Through the Seeing Glass
by Runuin
Summary: The war is over. It has been for some time. Harry is content with being an auror, but that can only last for so long. When boredom and curiosity cause him to land in another world, he thinks to himself, 'Maybe I shouldn't have messed with that artifact'.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"So it's over?" she whispered. She barely kept herself from trembling as a cold tingle travelled down her spine. "Just like that? Like the past three years never happened?" she continued. She dipped her head and allowed her hair to partially cover her face. Red silky hair flowed down all the way to her breasts. She could feel her eyes tearing up and desperately tried to will them back.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I can't be with you any longer." His eyes were closed. She wished she could see those emerald green eyes of his. It always brought her warmth when she looked into them. She frowned and averted her gaze, unable to stare at his face any longer.

"Is there someone else?" she asked. Through her peripheral vision she could see him shake his head sideways immediately. "Then why?!" she shouted as she turned to face him once again, "We were doing so well. Just a couple of days ago we-". Her voice reaching further than the room they had secluded themselves in. Her boyfriend, with his eyes still closed, further bowed his head to convey a silent apology.

"Because I asked him to," interrupted a voice from behind her. She recognised it immediately. She grew up hearing that voice after all. It was her brother, Ron. She turned around and faced the newcomer. He was a tall man, with red hair as dark as hers. His face was turned away as he was unable to look at his younger sister. He didn't want to see the anguish on her face.

"You asked him to?" she whispered in a deadly voice. However, before she could continue they were interrupted once again.

"What is going on here? Why are you making such a racket Ginny?" came the voice of her mother, Molly Weasley.

"Well mom, seeing as my boyfriend is dumping me because his best friend asked him to, I figure I have a right to be upset," she said, her frustration showing through clearly in her words. "Add to that, since this has become group event instead one couple talking to each other, I think that gives me the right to be peeved," she continued with the same tone.

"Harry's dumping Ginny?" came the voice of Fred Weasley, another older brother of hers. "Why?" said George Weasley, Fred's twin. "Oh, this is just perfect!" Ginny exclaimed and threw her hands up.

Molly, however, wasn't paying attention to them. She was staring at Harry Potter, Ginny's boyfriend. He had opened his eyes once Ron had interrupted them. Now, however, he wished he had kept them closed. He couldn't look at Molly. She was like a mother to him and had treated him like he was her own child. He knew she was ecstatic when he and Ginny had gotten together. Now that things weren't working out, he didn't want to see the look of disappointment on her face.

"Harry," Molly whispered, "Is all this true?"

Harry kept looking anywhere but at Molly. He opened his lips, but nothing came out. His mouth was dry. He closed his lips and cleared his throat while also taking a gulp of saliva. "Yes," he whispered.

Immediately the noise in the room grew by a substantial amount. Harry felt as if he was back in Hogwarts, in the great hall during lunch hour. Fred and George were loudly complaining that Harry had finally lost his mind. Molly began to tear up all the while shrieking that whatever the problem was they could work it out. Ginny was screaming at Ron, asking him what the hell his problem was. Ron stood silently against the doorframe letting Ginny vent as much as she wanted to. He stayed impassive even as he felt Ginny was about to resort to physical violence.

"Enough!" shouted a voice that just entered the room, interrupting everyone once again. She had brown hair with soft curls that came down gracefully to her shoulders. Her face was set in a frown as she walked towards Harry and stood by him.

"Ron asked Harry to end it with Ginny because of reasons we cannot share with you," Hermione said in a steady voice. Seeing as all of them were about to interrupt her, she raised her hand.

"We cannot share this information with you because it relates to the events that took place two years ago," she continued. _That_ shut everyone up real quick. Two years ago, was a historical moment for the wizarding world. It was the year Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort faced off against each other and Harry came out on top. The war between the pureblood fanatics that supported Voldemort's rise to power and the rest of the wizarding world was relatively short. However, it was brutal nonetheless.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were absent for most of the war. Occasionally popping up and supporting the resistance when they needed them most. But once their work was done they retreated. Many were angry that they were not taking a more active role in the fight against Voldemort. Some even called them cowards. The trio took the accusations silently and explained that the work they were doing in the shadows was more important and could effectively end the war. Many took heart from that, while some still remained sceptical.

It didn't matter what people thought however, because of the 'Last Battle at Hogwarts'. Voldemort had long sought Hogwarts as his stronghold. He had spent close to four months preparing his siege on the ancient castle. With werewolves, giants, dementors and his loyal death eaters at his side, his victory was almost assured. His plans were foiled by Harry, Ron and Hermione. With clever use of the invisibility cloak and numerous concealment charms they infiltrated a number of the dark lords hideouts.

Once in the hideouts, they poisoned the food supply. This was no ordinary poison though, it was one of Hermione's creations. Once consumed, the poison did not activate unless they were in a high adrenaline state. This was perfect because as soon as the death eaters and werewolves assaulted Hogwarts, the poison would take effect. Although the giants consumed the potion, they were not as affected by it as the humans. Their movements were still sluggish however, which made them easy targets for the resistance.

With his army taken out, and anti-apparation and anti-portkey wards set in place, Voldemort had nowhere to retreat. He and Harry finally duked it out by the Hogwarts lake. Unknown to Voldemort, the destruction of all his horcruxes had severely weakened his magical reserves. It went unnoticed because the depletion occurred slowly over the past year. The destruction of his horcruxes was also extremely beneficial for Harry. Harry had become the Master of Death once he united the three hallows - the elder wand, the cloak of invisibility and the resurrection stone. He discovered a way to drain the magical power of the horcruxes when utilizing all three powerful artifacts.

The drained magical power significantly boosted his reserves. Harry found that he could throw around high level spells far easier now. He still had to train heavily in that area though. He constantly duelled Ron and Hermione simultaneously. Soon, he was able to hold his own against the both of them. He also came up with multiple spell combinations. They were spells he would rapidly use in succession to trap, immobilise or move his opponent towards a specific spot.

Harry was far less experienced than Voldemort, but he more than made up for it with his superior physique and larger magical reserves. He forced Voldemort into using strong and exhausting spells as he ran circles around him, preferring to dodge instead of using shields. All the while, he was pelting Voldemort with spells equally as powerful as the dark lord was dishing out. It came down to a war of attrition. Neither of them got careless enough to take a spell head on. However, Harry's magical reserves had long surpassed Voldemorts.

While the resistance battled what was left of Voldemorts army, Harry slowly started to push Voldemort back. Voldemort was used to battles, having fought in plenty. However, he was not prepared for constant, draining spellwork for two hours straight. Harry however, had trained and planned for this exact scenario for almost a year.

At the two hour mark, most of the battle in Hogwarts had died down. The resistance had won. Many came to see the battle between Harry and Voldemort. None, however, dared to interfere. They all had high hopes though, seeing as Harry had only a few scratches and bruises over his body. While Voldemort had even fewer injuries, his breathing was labored and they could tell that he was ready to collapse. Harry was also breathing heavily, but that was mostly physical exertion.

Everyone went silent as Voldemort dropped to his knees. His wand slipping from his hand. They could hear Voldemort say something about how Harry only won because he acquired _that_ wand. Voldemort laughed and said it didn't matter because his immortality was assured. Harry then whispered something to him that made Voldemort furious. He lunged at Harry, but Harry calmly split his head from his body with a severing curse. He stepped to the side as Voldemort's body sailed past him and crashed into the ground. Voldemorts head rolled to his feet. With another flick, Harry set the head and body on fire and walked away. The crowd was silent for a few moments before they erupted in cheers.

Many had questioned how Harry had been able to match Voldemort so well. But, none of the trio would mention how exactly Harry accomplished it. These days, whenever the question came up Harry usually responded with silly comments like 'I just ate my vegetables daily' or 'I did a hundred push ups every day'. Kingsley Shacklebolt, the current Minister of Magic knew of course. He received a detailed report on everything Harry, Ron and Hermione did that year. He agreed with them that the information was too dangerous and should be kept between the four of them.

Ginny shook herself from the memory of that year. She had pestered Harry to tell her about his adventures that year. But he was adamant that no one else needed to know. She eventually gave up. Now, however, she wished she hadn't. Ron had walked across the room and joined Harry and Hermione. The three of them were facing the rest of Ron's family, waiting for them to react.

Finally Molly spoke, "That happened two years ago! What has that got to do with Harry and Ginny's current relationship?"

They were silent for a while before Hermione answered hesitantly, "An incident took place when we were looking for artifacts that could assist in defeating Voldemort." Seeing as everyone was waiting for her to elaborate she went on, "The incident itself doesn't matter anymore and we can't speak of it anyway. However, after that took place we noticed something." She took a deep breath and looked at Harry. Seeing him nod she continued, "Harry changed. And we don't know the exact extent of his changes."

Everyone was quiet for a while until George broke the silence. "Are you impotent?" he asked.

"George!" Molly screamed indignantly, as she turned to face him.

"What!" Ginny yelled at the same time and faced George. "No, he isn-" she continued, but abruptly shut her mouth as she realised what she was about to say. She was too late however, as Molly realised what her daughter inadvertently revealed. Forgetting George for the moment, she turned towards her youngest and directed all her ire at the situation towards her.

"No, I'm not," Harry said calmly, before Molly could yell at Ginny. He was used to the Weasley twins antics and wasn't bothered by their line of questioning.

"Are you sterile?" Fred asked.

Molly once again directed a furious look at another child of hers. Ginny, while glad that Fred had taken some of the heat off of her couldn't help but be curious. If Harry was sterile, she wouldn't care in the slightest. She could assure him it didn't matter to her and they could still be together.

Harry was expecting a comment like that from Fred. He wasn't however expecting a hopeful look from Ginny. 'What the hell is that about?' he thought to himself. Nevertheless, with a frown on his face he answered, "No, I'm not."

"Quick on the draw problems then?"

"Could be possible brother dear, but unlikely. Harry always waits for the most opportune moment to strike."

"Stamina issues, then?"

"No, it can't be. He and Voldemort were at it for two hours straight. Ginny should be satisfied with that level of performance if it even overwhelmed the darkest lord of all time."

"Never know, brother dear."

"Oh! Maybe it's Ginny who can't keep up with Harry. That would make more sense."

"Aha! Then the answer is simple. Harry should just get a mistress."

"She can't be a mistress! Harry and Ginny aren't married yet."

"Then what do we call her? Tramp seems a bit too much, especially since she's helping Harry and Ginny out."

"I think she's just a regular side chick."

"That's kinda boring, don't you think?"

"Enough!" screamed Molly and Ginny simultaneously. While the twins' back and forth was sometimes hilarious, it wasn't helping the current situation. Harry was rubbing the bridge of his nose in irritation while Ron was struggling to contain his laughter. A slap on the head from Hermione quickly quelled that.

Ginny turned to Harry. "Whatever changes you are going through we can work it out together Harry," she said.

"It's not that simple Gin," Ron spoke, "We don't know whether Harry is affected temporarily or permanently and whether or not it affects the people around him. And until we figure out a solution, Harry won't be able to be with anyone else."

That drew everyone's attention. Ginny felt slightly relieved that Harry wouldn't be dating anyone else anytime soon. She immediately felt horrible for thinking such a thing. The relief however, still remained.

"So, Harry won't be seeing anyone in the near future?" Molly asked in a quiet voice. Her concern for her daughter now shifted into concern for her 'son'.

"Yes, it seems so," Hermione answered.

"For how long?" Molly asked.

"We don't know."

"But, you can't stay alone forever. You will figure something out eventually, right?"

"We don't know."

"But-,"

"We can't be certain because that artifact is as powerful as it is ancient. And with something like that, a solution will not be easy."

Everyone went silent at that. They were not satisfied with the answers Harry, Ron and

Hermione provided, but they understood that this decision had not been an easy one. They continued talking throughout the day. When Arthur came home from the Ministry, he was informed on everything that happened. He too, joined in their discussion. Eventually, while none of them agreed with Harry's decision, they understood that it was his choice. Ginny was still upset and had secluded herself in her room.

Harry talked to her through the door, trying to get her to come out and talk to him. He eventually said his goodbye's and left the house. Ginny would later regret not saying what she felt at that moment.

* * *

It had been close to 40 years since that day. Harry was now an elite auror field agent. He was still very close with the entire Weasley family. Ginny was now happily married to a French wizard she had met while visiting Fleur's family. They had two lovely kids. It tore Harry apart watching them together. He had never had any feelings for another girl after Ginny. Even if he did, he could not act on them. Still, he was happy that she found happiness. Ron and Hermione were very supportive during their wedding and were constantly checking up on him.

While he did attend the wedding, he didn't stay for long. None of the Weasley's made a comment on it though and he was grateful for that. Molly was still pushing him to forget about whatever that artifact had done and just live his life. He smiled at that thought. Even though he broke her daughter's heart she still looked out for him. He always wondered if his mom would be exactly like Molly Weasley if she was alive. Probably, Sirius did always mention that Lily had a fierce temper.

Even Ron and Hermione had urged him to start casually dating. Hermione had concluded that whatever the three hallows had done to Harry, it would affect only him and no one else. Ron was very vocal in this decision. He felt very guilty for breaking Harry and Ginny up. Harry wasn't interested though. He had only ever loved one girl. After Ginny, he didn't feel any attraction towards any girl. The possibility of having a long term relationship with any woman was also impossible because of the hallows.

While his personal life was quite depressing, his professional one was very rewarding. Ron had long since retired from field work. It was around the time he and Hermione were expecting their first grandchild. Hermione had said that it was high time he gave up such a dangerous career. He was now the Head of the Auror Department. While Harry was officially an elite auror, many in the auror force considered Harry and Ron to hold the same authority.

Harry understood why though. He had as much experience as Ron and like Ron, the entire auror force was trained by them or by someone that trained under them. Together, the two of them established and efficient workforce. Harry often wondered what the war with Voldemort would have been like if they had the current auror task force to contend with Voldemort's death eaters. It would have been a hell of a lot easier, that's for sure.

Most of the auror's worked in teams of three. It helped develop a camaraderie that strengthened through time. Experienced teams knew each others habits and mannerisms better than their own spouses. This level of teamwork was a great boon in field ops and was praised multiple times in the Daily Prophet.

Harry had no current team though. He and Ron had formed an efficient team that lasted for a good 25 years. When Ron took up a desk job, Harry opted to work solo. His superiors were initially reluctant but knew that he could handle himself. So, eventually they agreed. Harry was now every auror's role model for bringing in over 500 criminals single handedly. He also had over a 100 kills under his belt when detaining criminals was no longer an option. Most retired aurors never went close to that number. Alastor 'Mad-eye' Moody was known to have killed just shy of two dozen criminals.

Right now, Harry was on the trail of a cult suspected of practicing blood magic. While this magic was frowned upon, it was not banned by the Ministry of Magic. Minister Granger had implemented a strict set of rules for all those who wished to study dangerous magic. All magic under this category was strictly controlled and those wishing to research these fields had to accept and follow strict regulations. While they basically lost all privacy under these rules, access gained to research materials more than made up for it.

Harry had finally received a tip from one of his contacts on the cults base of operations. He had signalled for back up and proceeded to gather intel on the base. He wasn't planning on engaging the cultist until backup arrived. The tip was unexpected, so he had no teams on standby. He figured that once his message was received, it would take about twenty minutes for a team to suit up into battle gear and move out. That was plenty enough time to map out the base and estimate the number of targets.

Harry calmly walked down the large halls of the cultists manor. He was cloaked in an invisibility spell of his own creation. He had also masked his footsteps and smell. While there were other ways of detecting him, Harry was confident he was safe. Wizards rarely delved into obscure ways to detect people. He was on the second floor corridor near a door he suspected would lead him to the main hall. Or at least the balcony that overlooked the main hall. It would be easier to spot and mark targets from above. He strongly suspected everyone had gathered for a ritual since the hallways were empty.

He quietly opened the door and slipped in. It seemed he was right. He could see the entire hall from where he was, as well as all the cultists. He wasn't on a balcony though, because the second floor covered the entire main hall and had a huge rectangle shaped hole in the center that showed the first floor of the hall. There were around three dozen cultists as far as Harry could figure out. He spotted several cultists he had been following for the past couple of weeks. Their hoods were off and he could see everyone's faces. 'Typical cultists,' he thought, 'Always with the fancy red robes and a hood.'

That train of thought immediately ended however as he looked at the center of the hall. From his vantage point he could easily see the huge circular pentagram drawn in chalk that encompassed a stone altar. From a cursory glance, it looked like some form of summoning ritual. Those were always dangerous. He didn't care for figuring out exactly what type of summoning ritual however, as his eyes rested on the altar. Or to be more specific, what rested on the altar - a child.

The young girl had her hands and legs tied with a rope. She looked to be about 13 or 14 years old. 'They probably needed a virgin', he thought. Missing children were high priority cases. Adults were less troublesome to kidnap. There was also a waiting period before you could register an adult as missing after all. She was unconscious for the moment, however, whatever spell they had her under seemed to be wearing off. He could see her stirring.

His focus shifted to one of the cultists. He looked like the leader. He was chanting in a language that Harry vaguely recognised as ancient greek. He hoped backup arrived ahead of schedule. He wanted to engage them before that man completed the ritual. If he had to, he would engage them alone but he was not confident that he could subdue all of them on his own.

Before he could plan out a strategy, his attention was drawn towards the altar. A magical circle was forming in front of it. It was as big as the altar itself. 'Crap,' Harry thought, 'Too late! Whatever it is their messing with, it's coming over right now!' With that final thought Harry burst into motion. He vaulted over the stone railing while drawing a second wand. He had tagged several people while surveying the room. It was a support spell that aided in aiming. As he was falling towards the first floor he sent several stunning spells at all the people he tagged. He softened the floor when he was about to land.

Around a dozen people simultaneously fell to the floor as he landed. A third of their comrades falling to the floor drew the attention of everyone in the room. The lead cultist immediately spotted Harry and drew his wand.

"Stop him! He cannot interrupt the ritual!" he shouted.

Harry was already in motion. He raised both his wands and pointed to a specific point above his head. With a silent chant he sent a powerful shockwave that knocked down all the cultists. He didn't have time to deal with them. His priority was the girl. He sent a strong summoning charm to her. He smiled as the charm took hold and she moved towards him. He lost the smile however, when the girl smacked against an invisible shield and fell to the ground. She groaned in pain, which further unravelled the sleeping charm she was under.

Harry cursed under his breath and moved towards the girl. He stopped in his tracks when a deep rumbling laughter permeated through the entire hall. The magical circle in front of the altar flickered and a demonic hand came up from the ground. The laughter continued as a behemoth lifted itself up and turned to face Harry.

"That flesh belongs to me, _Gor'om haguul_!" the demon roared baring its teeth at Harry. It was at least ten feet tall, and had red leather-like skin with huge six inch claws on both hands. A short tail that reached to its knees swished lazily as it stared at Harry with a smirk. Multiple spikes of various sizes protruded from its tail, back and head. Its muscles bulged as it flexed them experimentally. Harry figured he didn't get out much.

Harry's mind was quickly trying to figure out his options. 'This isn't good,' he thought, 'These fuckers have gone and summoned at least a 5th level demon.' Harry eyed the summoning circle drawn around the altar. 'They couldn't have had the power to summon a being of this level,' he pondered, 'unless…,'. Harry eyed the girl. She was only a couple of feet away from the demon, yet the creature made no move to collect her. Harry ran the demon's words through his head. His eyes widened as he realized what they had done. 'She isn't a sacrifice, well, at least not in the traditional sense,' he thought as he ran his fingers through his hair, 'These fuckers have tied her life force to the demon. As long as she lives the demon will remain in this realm. To banish the demon all the cultists have to do is end her life.' Harry cursed, 'They must have a way of killing her without entering the circle.'

'This keeps getting worse by the minute,' thought Harry as he eyed the recovering cultists. 'Okay, break this down,' Harry calmed himself, 'The girl is in no danger because the demon needs her alive. The cultists however, can kill her through their failsafe, if they even have one.' His thoughts picked up speed, 'The demon can't leave the circle so it's stuck for now. The cultists are the immediate threat. I'll deal with them and then figure out what to do with the demon.'

Harry breathed out a sigh while absentmindedly tilting his head out of the path of an incoming curse. 'Looks like I can't afford to subdue them in this situation,' he thought as he readied himself for a tough fight, 'I need to end this quickly. I don't know what type of connection the demon shares with the girl. Whatever it is, it can't be good for her.' Harry stowed both his wands as he rolled out of the way of a barrage of spells. He reached deep into his robes and ran his fingers over an invisible rune. Upon activation the rune spat out a fifteen inch black wand that Harry expertly caught. With a flourish a transparent shield popped in front of him and blocked all the incoming spells.

Once the shield activated he switched the power source from the wand to his left hand. His wandless capabilities were very limited but supplying power through one hand to maintain a spell was pretty easy. He raised a wide and tall wall behind the shield to hide behind for extra security. Now that he bought himself some time he started conjuring. All the cultists were focused on him, which was good. He didn't want them getting rid off or interacting with the demon. Right now the cultists had the number advantage. They realised that it was only one person they were facing and not a squad. This made them confident. He didn't want that.

He needed to eliminate the number advantage as well as get rid of their confidence. He wanted them scared. He wanted them to panic. A few moments later, Harry was breathing heavily. Exercising such powerful magic in such a short time was tiring. It was like sprinting at top speed for a couple of minutes. He still had energy, he just needed to catch his breath. The cultists had given up throwing spells at his shield and were trying to flank him. 'Too late,' Harry thought as a vicious grin stretched across his face. With a wave of his wand the wall separating him and the cultists vanished. He also stopped supplying power to the shield.

The cultists didn't attack however. They were frozen in fear. The demon, who had only been observing everyone silently grinned in amusement. Harry stood in front of over a dozen creatures he had created. They were all made from a magnesium alloy Harry had conjured and then shaped into various beasts. Notable among the creatures were a werewolf, a grim and a house elf with boxing gloves on. The elf was happily bouncing on his toes while lightly tapping his gloves together. That tap however, made the sound of two swords clashing together.

On the third tap, all the summoned beings raced forth towards the cultists. Most of them immediately turned and ran to seek cover. Some started throwing curses as fast as they could. They were untrained in combat, so it wasn't anything impressive. The werewolf slashed its claws with reckless abandon, dismembering cultists by the bundle. The elf was quick, the quickest of all the summons. He zipped between cultists delivering bone crushing blows. The grim barked in happiness, a cultists arm hanging from his jaw as it bounded through the mini war zone. A spider pounced on a nearby cultist as the huge dog passed by. It sank its pincers into the cultists neck as he screamed in agony.

Harry merely watched the chaos while looking for the true troublemakers. The only cultists that were making a good stand were by the lead cultist. The leader itself seemed to be performing a long chant. 'Well that can't happen,' Harry thought as he engaged the group. The leader immediately stopped, cursing Harry under his breath, while sending the darkest spell he knew.

The engagement was quite pitiful. Harry easily overpowered the small group. Before long, the battle had ended. The lead cultist was gasping for breath as he held his severed wand arm. He was trying and failing to stem the bleeding.

"Help me!" he whimpered pitifully, "You need me to get rid of the demon."

"That remains to be seen," Harry replied cooly. The grim came to his side and bared its fangs at the cultist. "How do I get rid of him?" Harry asked.

The cultist was openingly crying now. "I can kill the girl from here. Once she is dead, the demon will go away," he cried out, "Heal me and I'll tell you how."

Harry's expression darkened. "Killing the girl isn't an option."

The cultist's eyes widened. "But...but…, that's the only way to get rid of the demon. There's no way we can kill it! He's from the 7th realm" he cried out in dismay.

Harry was no longer looking at him. "You're right," he said without any emotion, "You can't kill him." While Harry was impassive in his gaze, he was inwardly cursing the cultists. He was hoping the demon was only from the 5th realm. He'd handled one of those before. But this was new territory for him. A 7th realm demon was almost unheard of. He could count the number global incidents where a demon was summoned from the 7th realm with only one hand.

He stepped over the cultist and slashed his wand behind him. The cultist gasped in pain as his neck was cut open. Harry felt cruel for doing that but if he stunned the cultist he would simply bleed out. He also didn't have time to heal the man right now. A sharp inhale of breath drew his attention.

The girl was conscious now, and by the looks of it, had been for some time. Her breathing was quick, like she was on the verge of a panic attack. Her eyes were wide as she looked at him. He supposed he was quite the sight right now. With over a dozen deadly creatures around him and his casual violence, she must think him quite the monster. He was also covered in the blood of the cultists. He couldn't focus on that right now though, as he shifted his gaze to the demon.

This was going to be a tough fight.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The demon had watched Harry with an amused grin throughout his entire fight with the cultists. Now, noticing that he had Harry's attention, he spoke with a deep voice, "It seems we are at an impasse human." His grin widened as he went on, "You cannot kill the girl from outside the circle and I cannot leave this circle. So, shall you watch me until I drain this child's life?". He spread his arms as he uttered the last sentence.

Harry walked towards the demon until he was 10 feet away from him. "No," he answered quietly, "I'll end this now." And with that statement he broke the magical circle that contained the demon with a wave of his wand. With the circle broken, the barrier separating him from the demon came down. The demon had gone quiet as it eyed him. "Interesting," he said, "You wish to save the girl, I see." He allowed Harry to stun and levitate the girl out of harm's way. The poor thing was hyperventilating, being in such close proximity to a 10 foot tall monster. "You aim to kill me," the demon spoke once again as Harry was levitating the girl.

"Yes," Harry answered simply as he focused all his attention on the demon.

The demon roared loudly in laughter. His disturbing howl echoed through the entire hall. "I will enjoy your flesh human," the demon spoke once he calmed down, "You are a fascinating individual. I'm curious as to how you will taste." His grin widened as he bared his teeth at Harry.

Harry didn't answer but silently commanded all his summons to attack the demon. As his beasts engaged the demon Harry chanted a spell. The ground around the demon grew sharp, deadly spikes and tried to run him through. The demon ignored the spikes however, he was confident his tough skin wouldn't be harmed by it. He was right. The spikes shattered into rubble as soon as they came in contact with the demon. The demon chose to take care of all the summons charging at him. Once that was done, he would see to the wizard.

He easily batted away the werewolf that had leaped at him. It cried out in pain and slammed into the wall. Its back was bent in an awkward manner. The animation charm on it immediately failed and the werewolf went still. The house elf came up next. It threw fast deadly jabs at the demon at a pace the demon couldn't keep up with. The jabs had no effect on the demon though, he merely found them annoying. He tried swiping the creature multiple times but the house elf was too fast.

Finally, he got fed up and slammed both his hands on the ground, creating a small shockwave. The house elf stumbled but managed to stay on its feet. That was all the demon needed though. He quickly stretched out his hands and grabbed the elf by the head. The elf was struggling and kicking its feet as the demon picked it up and brought it towards his face. With a snarl the demon increased the pressure and the elf's head crumpled like a soda can.

Meanwhile, while his summons were keeping the demon busy, Harry was frantically working on a rune. There were not a lot of things that could harm a demon of this caliber. It's a good thing that he had a weapon that might be able to hurt it. The demon was surprisingly fast though and he needed to immobilize him before he could bring out the weapon. When he was finally done with his preparations, he turned to the demon and waved his wand.

Water burst forth from his wand and completely soaked the demons legs. This wasn't regular water though, it seemed to be sticky. For instead of falling to the ground, it clung to the demons skin. The demon stopped and looked at Harry. "Is this supposed to do something?" he asked. Harry didn't answer him. He transferred the rune he was working on to the floor right beneath the demons feet. As soon as the rune appeared, it activated and began to glow.

The effect was immediate. The demon's legs froze and small icicles covered his skin. The demon snorted in amusement. "You think this can stop me?" he spoke and used his arm to shatter the ice on his right foot. However, instead of getting rid of the ice that covered his feet, his entire right foot shattered. He fell to his knees and brought his left hand to the ground to support himself. His entire body weight rested on that hand and his left knee.

"That wasn't normal water," Harry spoke as he began to lazily trace a rune in mid air using his left hand. "It clings to surfaces and seeps into the skin," he continued with an air of indifference, "The rune I used isn't a regular freezing charm either. It rapidly lowers the temperature of anything it encompasses. Your demon skin might be resilient, but the liquid collected deep in your legs isn't." Harry finished the rune and it began to thrum and glow softly. "When you shattered the ice, you also shattered the ice inside your leg," Harry said, "And with this, you are completely immobilized."

The demon snarled in anger. "It makes no difference filth!" the demon yelled, "My leg will regenerate soon enough! And then, I will enjoy tearing you apart!" Harry wasn't fazed though. "There are very few weapons in this world that can pierce the skin of a demon," Harry spoke as if he hadn't even heard the demon, "Especially one from the 7th realm." A sword appeared in front of his left hand and he easily caught it.

"I just happen to have one," Harry said as he inspected the magical blade. He hadn't made use of it in a long time. The words 'Godric Gryffindor' were written at the base of the blade. The demon's eyes widened as it began to struggle. His left foot, the one that hadn't shattered, refused to move as it was still encased in ice. The demon was crouched on his left knee and supporting himself with his left hand. His shattered right foot was healing slowly, but not fast enough.

"The blade isn't what's going to kill you though," Harry went on as he waved his wand. The blade floated from his hand and began to spin rapidly like a drill. The tip of the blade came down and faced the demon. "It's the basilisk poison coating the blade that will kill you," Harry whispered calmly, but the demon still heard it. It roared in rage at Harry.

With a silent command, Harry banished the sword at the demon. It zipped through the air at an astonishing speed. The demon brought his right hand forward in an attempt to deflect the blade. Harry was expecting it though. With a silent command, the grim, the only summon that survived, raced forth and latched onto the hand. With a snarl it brought the hand down and away from the blade. Before the demon could counter this move, the blade pierced his chest and sank into his heart.

The impact of the blade was tremendous. The demons back arched backwards while still on his knees and came into contact with the ground. The blade sank into the ground until only the hilt was visible, protruding from the demon's chest. The demon coughed painfully as blood leaked from his mouth. The poison was already in his system and working its way through the entire body.

"Curse you...human," the demon gasped, before going limp.

Harry sighed. "What a fucking cliche," he shook his head as he approached the demon, "I expected something better from a high class demon." He then proceeded to wave his wand in an intricate pattern. He was creating a high level barrier around the demon. On the off chance that it recovered, he wanted to be prepared. The demon wouldn't be able to escape from it and he would be able to kill it from the outside. It took a while to cast.

Around ten minutes later, Harry was finally done. He sunk to his knees and closed his eyes. He was tired. He had been chasing the cult for almost a week now and he hadn't had a good night's rest in a while. He just wanted to find a bed and collapse on it. He also used a lot of high level spells in the last hour. He groaned in annoyance as he realised he still had to check up on the girl. He stood up slowly and walked towards the girl. She was still unconscious. He needed to erase the girls memories. This event was undoubtedly traumatic for her, and the sooner she forgot it the better. 'A pity you can't obliviate unconscious people,' he thought as he cast a _Rennervate_ charm on her.

The girl opened her eyes slowly at first. That quickly changed however and she shot up like she had been shocked. She had a wild look in her eyes as she rapidly looked around the entire room until finally landed on Harry. She immediately shuffled back until her back hit the wall where she curled into a ball. Harry raised his arms in a placating gesture and spoke soothingly, "It's okay. I'm here to help you. You're safe now."

The girl wasn't listening however. She was staring at Harry who still had the cultists blood all over him. Harry cursed himself in his head. He should have made the room and himself more presentable. It definitely wasn't helping the situation. Before the girl could scream he cast the _Obliviate_ charm on her. The girls eyes took on a glazed look and her arms loosened the tight grip they had on her shins.

Harry carefully manipulated the charm into erasing the past couple of hours until the point of her kidnapping. With that done he released the charm. "By Merlin's unshaved testicles!" a voice gasped from behind him. Harry smiled grimly and searched for something inside his robes. He knew that voice all too well.

"Hey Ron," Harry said and removed his hand from his robe. He held up an expensive looking cigar. He conjured a small flame with a snap of his fingers and lit it up. "Things kinda deteriorated quickly. I couldn't wait for you guys," Harry said as he puffed on his cigar. He turned around and faced the group of aurors.

He counted seven of them, including Ron. A few were puking their guts out in the corner upon seeing the carnage. "Yeah," Ron scoffed, "No shit!". Ron gestured at one of the aurors and pointed at the girl. The auror nodded her head in confirmation and moved towards the child. As the auror passed him, Harry spoke up, "I've erased her memories of the incident. Have the healer look into her mind and do a complete physical check up as well. She was linked to the demon for a couple of minutes. I want to know if that has affected her physically or mentally." The aurors eyes widened and she quickened her pace. With a small crack, she apparated the girl to St. Mungo's.

Ron came up to Harry and ran his fingers through his hair. They were starting to grey. He didn't mind it though and Hermione said that it made him look 'distinguished'. "This is quite the bloodbath Harry," Ron commented as he surveyed the hall once more. Harry grunted in acknowledgement. "Yeah. Had no choice though," he said and gestured towards the demon, "Had to take care of the big guy quickly." Ron snorted in amusement.

"Yeah, that's one ugly ass behemoth," he snickered, "What is he? A level five? Six?"

"Seven," Harry corrected him as he blew a ring of smoke.

Ron jerked his head towards Harry. "Seven?!" he squeaked in astonishment. Harry chuckled at him and nodded his head. Ron calmed himself down and faced the demon once again. The grim was still there as Harry hadn't dispelled the animation charm. It walked up to Ron and nudged him in the leg. Ron sighed and patted it on the head. "Hey Padfoot," he whispered and rubbed the dog behind its ears. It did nothing for the dog, but it still whined in pleasure. He glanced at Harry through the corner of his eyes.

"Stop trying to act cool," Ron said as he eyed Harry's cigar.

"I'm not trying to act cool," Harry replied, "I just need a cigar after all the adrenaline leaves my system."

Ron scoffed at him. "Hermione hates it when you smoke you know," he said as he continued to scratch Padfoot.

"Yeah, well, _mom_ isn't here right now, is she?" Harry replied.

Ron shook his head and smiled at that. As the silence dragged on, the mood shifted from their light-hearted banter into something a bit more serious. Ron sighed once again and spoke up, "Tomorrow is going to be a nightmare once this gets out." Harry grimaced at that. He wasn't a big fan of press conferences. He still had trouble speaking in public. He hadn't warmed up to reporters either.

"Can't believe you took on the entire cult _and_ a demon from the 7th realm," Ron commented after a while. "You're age hasn't dulled you one bit," he whispered it so low, Harry almost didn't hear it.

"Yeah," Harry whispered back, equally as quiet, "Ain't that a peach."

* * *

The incident that came to be known as 'The demon cult massacre' was not well received by the public. Initially, the public and reporters praised Harry for his heroism. He was showered with gratitude once they learned he had stopped a demon from being unleashed into their world. However, one article change the tide of how the news was covered. A reporter had made an offhand comment in his article on how Harry had killed over a 100 criminals in his career. The massacre added about a third of that to his total, bringing it to around 130. While the article also mentioned that he detained over 500 criminals, it was overshadowed once it mentioned that the average auror only had a couple of kills.

'The Death Dealer', they called him. Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance once he read his new moniker. For once, he wished people gave him a cool nickname. This one was too corny for his liking.

The massacre proved that Harry was a very dangerous individual. He had taken on an entire group of cultists and a demon after all. People already knew he was extremely powerful. What they didn't know was he had no qualms using that power to kill if necessary. While no one could blame his actions, the notion that such a powerful auror was out there in the field scared people. That fear quickly grew and spread among the masses.

The entire auror department thought the situation was ludicrous. Harry was expecting it though. It wasn't the first time the public turned on him so quickly. He also didn't feel like being a field agent any more. The reason for that was the girl he saved.

He had dropped by St. Mungo's hoping to check on the girl. The healers assured him that she was perfectly fine and that the link between her and the demon was destroyed. However, as soon as he entered the room and approached the girl, she started screaming. He could still hear her yelling at him to get away from her when he closed his eyes sometimes. The healers were baffled. They checked her memory and confirmed that she didn't remember the incident, yet somehow she unconsciously knew that Harry was dangerous. Luckily for Harry, none of the reporters received word of that particular event.

After that, Harry no longer had the will to fight. He sparred with the new recruits with decreasing frequency. He mostly preferred to observe them and give them pointers now. Ron had tried to get him to talk, but nothing came of it. The wizarding world was also wary of him once again. He was gaining a reputation worse than 'Mad-eye' Moody. He no longer thought he was fit for combat as well. With those two main points in mind, he decided to retire as an auror.

He and Ron had a long discussion on the merits and demerits of him quitting. Ron eventually agreed it was for the best. The auror's weren't that inclined to agree however. They didn't want Ron caving to the masses unspoken demands. Harry assured them that he was tired and that it was high time he sought for a quieter life.

His retirement also presented an opportunity. The year he broke up with Ginny, was the year he discovered that he was no longer aging. Hermione had casually pointed out that he still looked like he was in his last year of Hogwarts. He laughed it off at first, but later on, with the help of Hermione he tested her theory out. They discovered that his cells were regenerating at an alarming rate. It wasn't detrimental to his health in any way however, it just meant that he had a really advanced healing factor.

They suspected it had something to do with the hallows and him becoming the Master of Death. It was the only plausible explanation. When Harry had first discovered his ability to drain Voldemort's horcruxes they thought that being the Master of Death meant that he had some control over souls. Especially, if those souls were dormant. He couldn't manipulate Hermione's and Ron's' souls, even though he could sense them. Upon discovering his healing factor they weren't sure the extent to which the hallows changed him.

Harry had to constantly maintain an illusion charm over his face to depict his actual age. Hermione helped create it. Through the years he had to regularly manipulate the charm to simulate him aging like a normal wizard. That wasn't what bothered him the most about all this though. His rapid cell regeneration meant that he would likely outlive all his friends, and their children, and their children and so on.

Hermione swore to Harry that she would research everything about the hallows and find a way to break his connection with them. They had already tried destroying the hallows on numerous occasions as well as simply separating the hallows from Harry. They always appeared next to his nightstand the following morning, completely unharmed. Hermione worked diligently for years, but she didn't make much progress. When she got the job as Chief Advisor to the Minister of Magic, her workload increased significantly. Then, when she later became Minister of Magic, her research all but came to a stop. She would still delve into research whenever an idea or rare book came along. Nothing came of it though. She felt terrible about it, but Harry assured her it was alright and that he was proud of the work she was doing.

Now that Harry was no longer an auror and chasing bad guys for a living, he thought he could pick up from where Hermione stopped. There wasn't anything else he could do with his life. He was never good at academics or research in his youth, but time changed that. He spent more time researching dangerous magic and ways to defend against them than anyone in England. He even gave a couple of guest lectures for Defense against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. The kids were always excited when he came. Only a few could boast to receiving a lecture from _the_ Harry Potter.

He didn't know how he would succeed where Hermione failed, but it was worth a shot. Especially, since he had nothing better to do. He applied for a position in the Department of Mysteries. With his extensive knowledge on the Dark Arts he was easily accepted. The only annoyance about his new job was that he had to write and store a thesis every couple of months. The thesis would have to cover magic that he had significant knowledge in. This was standard practice for all the newly initiated Unspeakables. He would have to do this for at least two years. In addition to this, he had to submit monthly reports on what he was currently researching as well as his notes on all experiments he conducted using the department's resources. However, the pros far outweighed the cons.

He now had access to vast amounts of information that would put the Hogwarts library to shame. Harry wondered how Hermione didn't abuse her position as minister to spend as much time as possible down here. He could just picture Hermione biting her lip while she internally debated over the idea. That thought always brought a smile to his face. He was excited at the opportunity to go through tomes and tomes of books. However, he made little progress in uncovering the truth about the hallows. Other than the myth of the three brothers, there was little documentation on the hallows.

He had made an exciting discovery though. One day, Harry thought of inspecting the Veil in the Death Chamber. Sirius had died when he fell through it and Harry was curious about it. The Veil was a tall, stone pointed archway that looked very ancient. A tattered black curtain hung in its centre, gently fluttering without any wind. Harry was examining the runes that were carved along the edges of the stone.

When he ran his hands over one of the runes, it lit up. He was shocked at that time and consulted with several Unspeakables who were much more knowledgeable about the Veil than him. They told him that it had never reacted in such a way, ever. Knowledge about the Veil was almost as non existent as the hallows. In all their research into the Veil, they uncovered very little.

Hermione was ecstatic upon the discovery. She theorized that the Veil was probably linked to the hallows in some way. When the rune didn't react to anyone else but Harry, he began to suspect the same. It was possible that the Veil recognised him as the Master of Death. Now, if only he could figure what all this meant.

* * *

Harry walked into the Death Chamber at a sedated pace. He had his morning cup of coffee in his hands and an extra one as well. The weather outside was extremely cold and his hot drink was soothing. He wasn't surprised to see someone already there. Standing by the Veil was a short witch. She had long blond hair that came down all the way to her lower back. She was running her wands carefully along the runes of the stone archway. After every couple of moments, she would turn to her notes that were floating nearby and write something in it.

"Mornin' Susan," Harry yawned while greeting his fellow Unspeakable. Susan was 10 years his senior and a highly pro-efficient researcher. She was primarily responsible for 'magivision'. The wizard equivalent for a television. She was muggleborn, and couldn't understand how the wizards were living in an age without any visual media. She was filthy rich as a result, but like most researchers, she couldn't care less. All she cared about was the next great discovery or invention.

She had been working on the Veil for more than a decade. When she learned that one of the runes lit up when Harry interacted with it, she almost squeezed him to death. Hermione later told him that she wanted to snog his brains out. Harry was glad she restrained herself. He would have been very embarrassed.

"Hiya Harry!" Susan said, as she stopped what she was doing and turned to face him. Harry handed her the extra cup of coffee and she thanked him for it. She sighed in contentment after taking a sip.

"So, any progress?" Harry asked.

Susan immediately lit up. Her blue eyes were shining so bright Harry thought she might have picked up that trick from Dumbledore.

"Yes!" Susan replied happily, "As you know, only one particular rune lights up when _you_ touch it." She automatically slipped into her lecture mode. "Also, when that rune is active," she said as she pointed at another rune, "This rune is the only one that activates upon touch. If you touch any other rune, the first one gets deactivated" She turned towards him and rubbed her chin. "Similarly, touching any other random rune when these two are active deactivates both the runes. We haven't experimented touching all the runes however," she said. Her eyes gleamed in happiness as she spoke again, "From this we can conclude that the runes need to be activated in the correct order to light all of them up."

"Fantastic," Harry muttered sarcastically as he eyed the 80 different runes on both sides of the archway. "And what exactly will happen when all the runes are activated?" he asked.

Susan brought her hand up and rubbed the back of her head. With a sheepish expression she answered hesitantly, "Uh, I have no idea."

"Perfect," Harry sighed, "So we have to go through a million different combinations until we finally get it right?"

"Nope!" Susan chirped, back to her perky self. "I haven't spent the last decade studying this thing with nothing to show for it. I already cracked the sequence this morning."

"And when did you start working on it?" Harry asked as he eyed the bags under her eyes.

"Last night," Susan said, still jubilant as ever.

"And did you get any sleep," Harry continued to question her. All he got was a shake of her head. He sighed once again. It was just like her. She was really bad at taking care of herself. He had to force her to eat and sleep plenty of times. Her whining when he stopped her research didn't help either.

"Great," Harry commented with fake enthusiasm, "I'm glad you won't be sleep deprived when we experiment blindly on a dangerous and powerful magical artifact."

"Oh, hush you!" Susan said as she grabbed hold of his arm and dragged him to the first rune, "Just activate the one's I tell you to. And no complaining!"

Harry let her drag him, his shoulders slumped in defeat. She was too jacked up on her discovery. He would never be able to calm her down for a nap in this case. So, reluctantly, he followed her commands and started touching the runes she directed him to.

Half and hour later, they were finally done. They had to start over once, when Susan accidentally directed him to activate the wrong rune. The black curtain of the archway started to flutter at an increased pace, until it was vibrating so fast Harry could barely see the ripples. The vibration created a noise that reminded Harry of one of Hermione's toys when he accidentally walked in on her at her office. He quickly pulled Susan away from the Veil and dragged her behind him. He drew his wand and raised a transparent barrier between the Veil and themselves.

After a while, the vibrating sound of the curtain died down. Harry couldn't see any ripples. However, the material of the black curtain seemed to change. It was reflective now. He could see his own reflection as clear as a mirror. Through the mirror, he saw Susan poke her head out from behind him and look at the Veil.

He cautiously lowered the barrier and walked towards it. With a wave of his wand, he conjured a small stone and levitated it towards the Veil. When the stone came into contact with it, a clinking sound echoed through the chamber.

"It's solid," Susan exclaimed from behind him, "It also seems like a mirror now." She then noticed that the runes at the top of the archway had faded. Letters in ancient Sumerian had appeared. Luckily, she was able to translate them even though she wasn't that well versed in the language. "Eluvian," she spoke out loud. "Seeing glass," she added at Harry's questioning look.

Harry walked up to his reflection and touched the obsidian glass. He jumped back in shock when his hand fell through. "What the hell?" Harry yelled in surprise. Susan quickly came beside and grabbed onto the hand that went through the glass. After careful inspection with her wand, she let it go. "There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it," she whispered in amazement.

Over the years, they had tested the Veil with a number of objects. Nothing had ever returned back when they summoned for them. One Unspeakable dared to put his hand through. He immediately screamed in pain when his hand passed through the curtain. When he yanked it back, they saw that there was only bone. All the flesh had disappeared. Furthermore, the effect had not stopped. Some form of curse was eating away at his flesh and travelling up his arm. Susan had to quickly amputate the Unspeakables arm at the elbow. That action had probably saved his life.

Once Harry regained his bearings, he stepped up to the Veil once again. He hesitantly stretched his arm once again and pushed it through the mirror. It felt weird. Like he was dipping his hand into a cold lake. Cautiously, he stuck his head through. He heard Susan shout his name in admonishment, but he was too entranced by what he saw before him. He quickly pulled his head out and faced Susan.

"Whoa!" Harry said, "There's thousands of them."

"Thousands of what?" Susan asked with a worried frown. She was wringing her hands and biting her lip.

"This mirror," Harry gestured with his only hand that wasn't sticking through the mirror, "This Eluvian, seeing glass." He stuck his head in once again for a quick peek.

"There is literally thousands of them," he spoke with his head sticking through the mirror. Susan barely heard him. It sounded like he was speaking from a very far place.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, still worried. 'This was not the way to conduct experiments,' she thought to herself.

"Yeah," came Harry's muffled voice, "I'm fin-". He was interrupted when the Veil abruptly sucked him in. He had no chance to react as the obsidian mirror swirled in itself before turning back into the familiar black tattered curtain.

"Harry!" Susan screamed and reached out for him. She stopped herself once her mind registered the black curtain. She knew exactly what would happen to her if she stuck her hand in there.

For a couple of seconds, she just stood there. Her face was frozen in shock and her eyes welled up. She shook herself from her stupor and turned and fled through the chamber. Her boss needed to know about this, as well as Minister Granger. She hoped the minister wouldn't kick her ass. She hoped that they will be able to retrieve Harry. She hoped, that Harry was okay.

* * *

When the Veil sucked in Harry from his world, it spat him out into the one he was looking at. Harry was flung forwards and crashed into another stone archway. He grabbed his head in pain. His vision was blurry. He could feel some sticky fluid on his palms. 'Blood, most likely,' he thought as he just lay there on the floor. In no time at all, he healed from the wound and stood up like nothing happened.

He stared at the mirror in front of him, the one that spat him out. He walked forward and pressed his palms against the mirror. Nothing happened. It just rested against the glass. 'Fuck,' Harry cursed. He probably needed to activate it. He eyed the runes that littered the stone archway. "Well," he said to himself in resignation, "This could take a while."

Or not. None of the runes responded to his touch. Harry was baffled and on the verge of a panic attack. Something, that was very rare for him. He couldn't understand why this thing wasn't responding to him. He summoned all the Hallows to him. For the first time, he was relieved to see them. He was still their 'master'. Harry cursed again in frustration and turned around. He eyed the thousand other 'Eluvians'. 'Maybe one of them would work,' he thought as he brought his wand and marked the mirror behind him.

Two hours later and he made no progress. There were more than a thousand of these things. He didn't see an end to them. He figured that if he was able to go through one of them then he would be back on Earth. Probably not in the Department of Mysteries, but still somewhere else on Earth. His musings were cut short by a noise. It was the same vibrating sound the Veil made when it activated.

With renewed energy, he quickly pin pointed the direction the noise was coming from. He ran at top speed until he spotted the mirror that was making the noise. It was pretty easy, the thing was glowing brightly. Fearing that he would miss his chance to go through, he dived through the mirror with reckless abandon. He felt like he just entered a lake and exited it at the same time. The cold sensation lasted for a moment before his entire surroundings changed.

His instincts kicked in immediately. Before he could land flat on his belly, he tucked himself and performed a textbook roll. He came to a stop a couple of feet away from the Eluvian. Taking a look at his surroundings, he soon realised he was not alone.

Standing near the Eluvian was a tall bipedal being. Male, by the looks of it and human-like. It definitely wasn't human though, although it certainly looked like one. His ears were pointed and he possessed sharp angular facial features. His eyes were narrowed and staring at Harry's own. There wasn't any aggression in his gaze though, he simply seemed curious. He was dressed in simple pure white robes. Still, Harry could tell they were very expensive and of very high quality. He thought he was in the presence of royalty judging by the beings clothes and stance. Even with the robes on Harry could tell that the being had a lean, athletic build.

"Oh? What's this?" the strange being spoke in wonder, "A dh'oine?".


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

"-and once we are finally alone, I will take those strawberries, dip them in chocolate and run them _slowly_ down your neck all the way to th- Ow!," the man was interrupted as a tall woman dragged him away by the ear. She was a woman in her 40's with golden brown hair neatly tied up in a bun. She wore a long dark green dress that reached to her ankles. A corset tied outside the dress pushed her ample bosom together which created an enticing view. A money pouch tied to a brown leather belt hung loosely at her side. Her face was set in a frown as she continued to drag the man away.

" _What_ have I told you about flirting with my customers?" she asked him angrily.

"Your customers? Don't you mean _my_ cust-," the man yelped in pain as the woman increased the pressure on his ear. She stopped and turned to glare at him. He immediately wilted under her intense stare.

"You do not run this place, I do! I don't care if I'm your employee! You asked me to run this place and I say what goes on in this tavern and what doesn't!" she barked at him angrily.

The man sighed in defeat. He slowly extracted himself from her iron grip, wincing in pain all the while. He ran a hand through his long raven locks and looked at her with his bright emerald eyes and gave her his best puppy-dog look. She immediately softened upon seeing the expression on his face.

"You are of course right Maria," he said in a soothing tone, "How can I expect you to run things around here when I am interrupting the customers all the time." He reached for her hand and gently grasped it. "Let me make it up to you," he continued, "Show you how sorry I am." Maria bit her lip and looked away.

"It's been awhile since we've been together hasn't it?" he asked her as he gently stroked her arm.

"Well, you have been running around with random girls almost every day," Maria said in a much quieter voice, "I know both of us agreed to never be exclusive, but pay me a _little_ attention."

"You're absolutely right. Why don't I put together a small picnic basket and then the tw-," the man was once again interrupted as the door to the inn burst open.

"Harry! I need you!" came the frantic voice of a red headed woman. She looked like she had just gotten up from bed. Her hair was in disarray and her makeup was half done. Her shoes were on the wrong feet which was making it hard for her to walk or run.

The man, Harry, looked like a deer caught in headlights as his head swiveled from Maria to the newcomer. He was still holding Maria's hand in his as he tried to come up with something to say. Maria just rolled her eyes in annoyance and scoffed. Without another word she turned around and walked back to the bar.

"Wait Maria! I don't know anything about this, I _really_ don't!" Harry shouted after her in vain.

The woman with red hair reached him by then and spun him around. Her grasp on him was tight and she was gasping for air. It was clear to Harry that she left the house in a hurry and ran all the way here. Despite this, she looked absolutely gorgeous. She had bright blue eyes, like lapis lazuli, as he once heard a sorcerer describe them. Her oblong shaped face was set in a frown as she looked at him.

"Hiya Triss! You're looking wonderful today," Harry said with a smile.

Triss Merigold of Maribor glared at him. She was a founding member of the Lodge of Sorceresses. The Lodge was a secret organization comprised entirely of female mages; often referred to as the _sisterhood_.

"Not now Harry. My friend's injured, and I could use your help," Triss said quickly.

"Oh it's nice to see you again Harry," Harry said in a feminine voice, "I know we haven't spoken in a while ever since we hooked up, but I need a fav-". Harry's speech was cut off as Triss roughly shook him and screamed his name in frustration.

"Alright, alright, calm down," Harry said as he raised his arms in surrender, "I'll help you. Let me just gather my stuff and we'll go see this friend of yours."

Triss's shoulders slumped in relief. "Thank you," she whispered, "Meet me at my place as soon as you've got everything you need." Without another word she concentrated on her magic and muttered a few words under her breath. With a small wave of her arms she teleported from the inn to her apartment. A thundercrack resonated in the inn as a result of her departure.

"Dammit Harry! Tell your sorceress _friend_ 'no teleporting inside or outside the inn'," came the voice of an annoyed Maria.

Harry sighed and sank into a nearby chair. "This day had started off so great," he whispered to himself.

* * *

A small vibrating buzz was the only sound that signified Harry's apparation. If Triss had not heard it over a dozen times she would have dismissed that sound as unimportant or a figment of her imagination. Harry wasn't like any other wizard she knew. His brand of teleportation was much more versatile, although the experience was much more unpleasant. She winced at the memory of him apparating her to her apartment that one time. She had no desire to go through that again.

Aside from his unique mode of transportation, he was the only sorcerer she knew who didn't dabble heavily into spells. He prefered runes and potions. Although any sorceress or sorcerer worth their salt knew the basics in runes and potions, very few ever achieved mastery in them. Triss, however, was complete rubbish at potions. Although, it wasn't her fault. She was allergic to magic elixirs and potions unless they were brewed in a very specific manner.

She was amazed with the things Harry accomplished though. Within their community, Harry was renowned for his healing elixirs. He was also famous for creating the _Wolfsbane_ potion which allowed a werewolf to retain their human conscious after their transformation. It was not well known because the ingredients were hard to come by, but it was a monumental achievement nonetheless. Until the creation of the potion, only ancient werewolves were able to achieve that state.

"Alright, I'm here! Lets get this show on the road!" Harry interrupted her train of thought with his upbeat voice.

That was another thing Triss admired about Harry. No other sorcerer or sorceress behaved that way. Every single one of them was a scholar and trained in politics as much as magic. This meant they were also trained in proper etiquette and were brought up as if they themselves were nobles. Harry's carefree attitude did not exist among normal sorcerers and sorceresses. Triss didn't know if Harry even had a serious side. Almost all of their interactions were at banquets or at masquerade balls.

Despite Harry's behavior, he was well liked among other sorcerers. He was funny, unusual enough to peak their interest and very knowledgeable in what he did. A few found his attitude 'deplorable and unfitting for a sorcerer to behave in such a way'. Chief among them was Philippa Eilhart, a founding member of the Lodge of Sorceresses. Harry loved to pester her at every opportune moment. He said he had a thing for cougars and that Philippa just got his engine running. Triss snorted at that thought. Although Philippa openly despised him, privately she confessed to Triss that she didn't find Harry that irritating and admitted that he was an exceptional sorcerer.

"Good," she said, "I just need a few minutes for the crystals to charge the portal." She turned away from him and faced the wall. She sensed him come to a stop right behind her. His hands grabbed on to her hips and he drew her to himself. Unconsciously, she leaned her head back and rested it on his chest.

"Well, if we have a couple of minutes, I know how we can spend our time," Harry muttered as he breathed into her ear.

"You're terrible," Triss whispered with her eyes closed. She had lost a bit of her beauty sleep this morning and was merely resting her eyes. "As I recall, you were busy flirting with Maria when I barged into the inn."

"Yeah, thanks for that by the way," Harry commented sarcastically.

Triss smiled and turned to face him. "How can you flirt with her and then casually flirt with someone else so quickly? You are so carefree and shameless," she chastised in fake admonishment.

Harry put on his best charming smile and replied, "Ah, Triss my darling. Once you reach my age, you stop taking life too seriously and just enjoy the ride."

Triss smirked at his response. She turned away from him and checked on the crystals. "You aren't much older than me you know," she said.

"Hmm, thats true. You're in your 80's right?" Harry asked.

Triss turned to face him once again. Her smirk still present, she winked at him. "A lady never reveals her true age."

"Doesn't matter as long as you have the body of a 25 year old," Harry said as he reached for her backside. She easily batted his hand away before it could pinch her bottom.

"Pervert," she whispered with a smile while staring into his eyes. "Come," she said and turned to face the wall once again, "The crystals are charged."

With a wave of her hand she activated the portal. Without looking back, she promptly walked through it. Harry happily walked behind her. He used to loathe all methods of wizard transportation back on Earth. However, these sorceresses and sorcerers managed to make the experience _almost_ pleasant. It was a lot better than taking the Floo at the very least.

Harry immediately paused his steps upon exiting the portal. It was not because he was disoriented from the travel, it was because of where they arrived. He had several markers all over Vizima, the city they had just come from, and he knew exactly how far and in which direction they had travelled. Two days ago, something had happened nearby this place. He wondered if the events were connected.

"Harry," Triss called him with a frown, "Everything okay?"

Harry just nodded his head and followed her without saying a word. He would find out if his suspicion was true eventually. Now that Harry wasn't occupied by his thoughts, he was able to take a quick look at his surroundings. They had teleported into a huge dining hall of what looked like an old keep. It wasn't in a good condition at all. Holes and rubble littered the interior. It was also sparsely populated with furniture. Most of the space was taken up by large planks of wood that were lying next to scaffoldings, where the strongholds deterioration was at its worst. Harry correctly guessed that whoever resided here intended to patch things up as best as they could.

"This is Kaer Morhen," Triss said as they walked through the dining hall, "It's the headquarters of witchers from the School of Wolf." Her statement brought an immediate frown on Harry's face.

Witchers. Humans who undergo extensive training, ruthless mental and physical conditioning, and mysterious rituals in preparation for becoming a monster-slayer for hire. Recruits were usually young children. A Witcher is a formidable and often overwhelming opponent to the more mundane race thanks to their superhuman physical prowess, regenerative capabilities and magic.

It was not uncommon for common folk to treat witchers as outcasts and sometimes even meet them with hatred. With cat-like eyes, unusual abilities, magic skills and their over exposure to dangerous monsters, it was somewhat understandable. People often fear what they do not understand after all. Witchers were often referred to as mutants or non-human.

That wasn't why Harry had a problem with them though. Witchers had a brutal and often fatal training regimen. He heard that on average, only 3 out of 10 witcher trainees would survive their training. And these were children. He was glad when he heard that they were no longer recruiting any more witchers. Nowadays, when monsters have become something of a rarity, the demand for the witchers' services has declined significantly. It was a dying profession.

"Well, well, what an honor! Triss Merigold herself has deigned us worthy enough of her presence," came a sarcastic voice from their right. Harry turned and saw a man exiting a room. He assumed it was the kitchen based on the few utensils he could see. The man was carrying a knife in one hand and an apple in the other.

"Lambert," Triss acknowledged the new arrival with a sigh, "A pleasure as always."

The man, Lambert, was tall and slim. He had short, jet black hair with a clean-shaven face. His cocky smirk and strut as he walked towards them made Harry instinctively dislike him. His gait seemed to scream 'prick'. He came to a stop once he reached the two of them. He pointed at Harry with the hand holding the apple and said, "Who's the arm candy?"

Before Triss could respond, Harry lifted both his arms and made a pulling gesture; like he was yanking on a rope to ring the church bell. Triss and Lambert looked confused. "What are you doing?" Lambert questioned.

"I'm using telekinesis," Harry responded.

Lambert took a quick look around. There was no object nearby. "On what exactly?" he asked.

"On the pole that's shoved up your ass," Harry replied with a straight face, "I'm trying to remove it."

Lambert opened his mouth to give a snarky comeback but was interrupted by a roaring laugh. The newcomer was not as wiry as Lambert, but Harry could tell that he was easily as agile. He was more built and had a large, disfiguring scar on the right side of his face. He had medium length raven hair with a middle partition. His cat-like eyes shined in amusement as he approached the group.

"I like him Triss. You should keep him," the man said before he addressed Lambert, "What do you think?"

Lambert rolled his eyes and turned away from the group. "Yeah, he's fucking hilarious," he said in a flat voice as he left the hall to a different part of the stronghold, presumably his room.

The man turned towards Triss and Harry once Lambert had said his piece. "You'll have to forgive Lambert. He's never had much control of that mouth of his," he said in an apologetic tone. "It's good to see you Triss," he continued with a nod to the sorceress. He extended his hand towards Harry and greeted him. "My name is Eskel," he said simply.

Harry shook his hand and introduced himself. He found this witcher much easier to get along with. He kind of reminded him of Neville. Not the Neville who was with him through the early years at Hogwarts, but of the Neville that experienced war and lead his fellow students to battle against Voldemort's army.

"Come," Eskel said, "Vesemir is waiting."

Triss immediately followed him and a second later, so did Harry. Triss immediately began firing questions at Eskel. 'Is it all true Eskel?'. 'Has he been stabilized?'. 'I cannot believe he is here. I was assured he had passed away.' That last one caught Harry's attention. However, he opted to silently observe until it was the right time to ask questions.

Eskel led them up the spiral staircase to a large wooden door. He rapped his knuckles twice on the door and then opened it without waiting for a response. The room was spacious. It certainly had a lot more furniture than the dining hall. The furniture looked expensive too. A circular stone platform with pillars on the edges and a roof stood in the center of the room. A fire was kindling in its center. Custom designed tables, chairs, carpets, luxurious bed and a dressing screen were scattered stylishly across the room. It looked like a sorceress had decorated the room. Harry could see a balcony to his right as he entered the room. He got a glimpse of the enchanting mountain pass that surrounded Kaer Morhen. Lush green trees surrounded the land and the sun shone beautifully completing the scenery.

"It's good to see you again child," came the voice of an old man from the bedside. His voice did not justify his look though. The old man stood up from where he was seated and approached Triss. His grey hair was loosely gathered and tied behind his head. The back of his hair flowed freely to his shoulders. He had a full beard that was trimmed short. He was heavily garbed in leather armor that barely scrunched when he moved. He embraced Triss like a grandfather would. "Welcome to Kaer Morhen," Vesemir said after they separated. Triss smiled warmly at the man and thanked him for his hospitality.

Harry was definitely getting a Dumbledore-esque vibe from this man. If he was right, Vesemir was probably at least a century older than Dumbledore. He certainly didn't look it though. Harry could easily make out that Vesemir was in outstanding physical condition. He had a broad chest and slightly bulky arms. His stance was powerful and authoritative. He reminded Harry of a lifelong military man.

"And who is this?" Vesemir asked as he turned to Harry.

As Triss opened her mouth to introduced the two of them, Harry spoke up, "Harry Potter." He extended his hand in greeting to the ancient witcher. Harry was impressed with Vesemirs' powerful grip. "Triss thought I would be able to help," Harry continued as they shook hands, "And I could never resist her when she bats those eyelashes my way." Vesemir chuckled and Harry smiled. Triss rolled her eyes and turned to face the other occupant in the room.

The man was not conscious though. He was lying in bed and sweating profusely. His long grey hair, similar to Vesemirs', came all the way down to his clavicle and was in disarray. A huge scar ran across his left eye. His skin was pale and his features were sharp. His brow had a slight wrinkle and his face was scrunched up. Whatever he was dreaming, it wasn't pleasant, but at least it didn't seem like a nightmare.

Triss approached the bed and rested her palm on his temple. Her hand glowed as she ran a quick diagnostic with her eyes closed. After a couple of seconds the glow faded and she opened her eyes. She looked at Vesemir. "He has a slight fever, but nothing else seems to be wrong with him," she said.

Vesemir nodded his head. "I agree," he spoke, "I concluded the same."

He frowned and rubbed his stubble. "That is not my concern though," the man spoke once more, "I think he is suffering from amnesia. He has been in and out of conscious a couple of times, but was unable to recognise any of his fellow witchers, including me."

Triss frowned in thought. "It might not be amnesia at all. He probably wasn't completely lucid in those brief moments of consciousness."

"True," Vesemir agreed, "But I do not think that is the case. One does not simply cheat death and escape unscathed after all."

Harry's attention was once again drawn to the last statement. That was twice he heard that this man lying in the bed had cheated death. It was intriguing. "Why do you say he has cheated death Vesemir?" Harry asked.

Vesemir turned towards Harry with a raised eyebrow in confusion. After a brief glance at Triss he seemed to understand. "Ah," he said, "I see Triss hasn't explained things to you yet. Well, do not blame her. She has a habit of forgetting important details while dragging people along with her."

"Yes. I am quite familiar with her methods," replied Harry.

"You guys," Triss complained, "You are making me out to be some really bad girl."

"For this to work," Harry spoke, ignoring Triss completely, "For me to be most effective in healing the patient. I need to know everything. Especially any pre-existing medical conditions. It is essential for giving out the right dosage amount."

"The man in the bed is Geralt. You probably have heard some of his tales. They call him The White Wolf. He was - _is_ one of our best," Vesemir went on and pointed at Eskel, "Eskel and Geralt actually grew up training together." Vesemir then sighed and moved towards the bed. "A couple of years ago, Geralt was fighting a mob in Rivia. The humans were massacring non-humans - the elves and the dwarves. Geralt stood in their way and he died at the end of that battle," Vesemir closed his eyes and he went on, "A couple of close friends of Geralt was with him when this happened. They wouldn't have lied to me. He even has the stab wounds of the pitchfork that pierced his stomach."

Vesemir turned away from the bed and faced Triss and Harry and folded his arms. "Two days ago there was storm nearby. It was unnatural. Eskel and Lambert went to investigate the area where the storm originated from. They found Geralt lying in the dirt, passed out and half dead. He briefly spoke with Eskel. Said he didn't remember anything and didn't know where he was," Vesemir said as he gazed out a nearby window.

Harry was quiet for a while. 'Two days ago huh?', Harry thought to himself. "This storm," Harry spoke aloud to Vesemir, "Was it 3 miles away in that direction?" He pointed towards the large balcony that gave a splendid view of the mountains. Eskel, who was leaning against the door jerked upright. Vesemir too spun around quickly in surprise. He narrowed his eyes at Harry. "Yes," he said and nodded his head, "How did you know that?" Triss too was astonished and sent a questioning look at Harry.

Harry sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose in irritation. He took a seat in a nearby chair. He took out a cigar and lit it up. Triss frowned at him and made a loud noise in disgust. Harry easily ignored her. 'Why can't things be simple?' he questioned himself silently. After taking a long puff he answered, "Two days ago, I detected a portal being opened. I could tell that whoever came through the portal was coming from another world. It's not unheard off but it doesn't happen often. I figured it was none of my business as to who came through, although I did mark the location of the portal on my map."

Everyone was alarmed at what Harry had just casually revealed. They glanced at the unconscious Geralt and looked back towards Harry. "Another world," Triss muttered in wonder, "But the only other world we have had contact with is -".

"Yup," Harry said as he took another puff from his cigar, "Geralt over here just travelled from the land of the Aen Elle."

The Aen Elle are elves who inhabit another world. They are similar to the elves of this world, the Aen Seidhe, because the Aen Seidhe were once a part of the Aen Elle until they decided to travel to the world of humans. Of course, at the time, humans hadn't appeared in the world.

"The land of the Aen Elle," Triss whispered in wonder, "But, the portal to their world hasn't been opened in centuries. We thought all knowledge of that has been lost."

Harry snorted. "In this world maybe," Harry said, "But I highly doubt _those_ pricks would ever be careless enough to do that." He sighed in contentment as took another drag from his cigar, "There are a few Aen Elle who have the knowledge to portals to other worlds. _None_ can create them though. There are countless worlds that we know none about. Each of these worlds is linked by passages, hidden gateways that afford travel from one world to another. Very few Elven Sages, Aen Saevherne if you will, know of this and even fewer have acquired enough knowledge to make use of it."

"How do you know of this?" Eskel asked with a frown, "If this knowledge is as you say, not well known, then how does a sorcerer of this world know so much of these passages."

"I dabbled in the subject for a short while," Harry answered casually, "I had a brief interest in travelling to other worlds. However, I realised that it would take me centuries to simply predict when these passages will open. After that, I turned my focus to other more fruitful endeavors."

"That still does not explain how you have acquired so much knowledge if information about these passages are as scarce as you say," Eskel pressed on.

Harry eyed Eskel for a moment. The witcher was persistent. "I was simply fortunate enough to have a conversation with an Aen Saevherne knowledgable in the subject," he answered finally. Eskel remained silent. It was clear Harry was not willing to share any further information on the subject. He didn't blame the sorcerer. They had just met, it was unlikely he would spill his secrets to strangers. He was surprised that Harry had already volunteered as much information as he had.

"It matters not whether Geralt travelled from a different world or not," Vesemir spoke up once it was clear that the conversation about passageways had ended, "What matters is that Geralt is here now and his mind needs to recover."

"I suppose that's where I come in," Harry asked while looking at Triss.

"Yes," Triss answered, "Vesemir had mentioned that Geralt's mind needed examining when he contacted me. You have much more knowledge in that field than I, so I sought your guidance."

"Tut-tut Triss," Harry waggled his finger at Triss, "I know sorcerers and sorceresses these days are all about flashy spells and causing mayhem and destruction; but one should never neglect the more subtle arts."

Triss rolled her eyes at his comment, "Just because _you_ are absolute rubbish in a fight doesn't mean I have to spend hours and hours researching boring theory."

"I am _not_ rubbish in a fight," Harry spluttered indignantly, "I can cast support spells and I can create traps as well. That is incredibly useful."

"Sure, sure," Triss placated him mockingly, "You just have to request your enemies to sheathe their swords until you're done preparing."

Harry huffed in annoyance and removed his wand. He walked over to Geralt and knelt beside the bed. He started waving his wand and scanning his mind. It was a lot harder to do because he was unconscious and Harry had to ignore random thoughts and memories that kept popping up. Ten minutes later, he was done.

"Well, there is good news and bad news," he said once he stowed away his wand. Seeing as none of them were going to ask for the good news or bad news first he went on, "The good news is that he is going to make a full recovery." As they sighed in relief he added, "The bad news is that it will take a couple of years to regain all his memories."

"A couple of years," Vesemir pondered, "Is there any way to force him to remember or speed up the process?"

Harry nodded. "I can probably force him to remember everything now. However, I wouldn't recommend that. There is a good chance that he may suffer from a brain injury as a result. His motor skills could be hindered, he might have a massive shift in personality and so on. Basically, there will likely be consequences and we don't know what they are."

Vesemir nodded. He had expected something like that. "Still a couple of years to regain his memory seems like a long time." Harry shook his head in disagreement. "It's not that bad," he said, "What I meant by a couple of years was in reference to Geralt gaining _all_ his memories. Towards the end, there will be a few gaps that he will be unable to fill until a specific event triggers the memory. However, I suspect Geralt will recover a bulk of his memories within a year. After he has recovered most of it, the speed at which he regains his memory will gradually decline."

Triss nodded in agreement, "That sounds about right."

Vesemir agreed, "A much better prognosis than I had imagined."

"Right," Harry said, "So for now, I'll just feed him a potion for his fever and another one to give him a dreamless sleep. That will calm his mind and reduce brain activity which is good. Once he wakes up, we'll take things slowly. His linguistic skills should be intact, as well as his motor skills. I suggest once he is fit, you train or spar with him daily. The movements you go through might trigger several memories of him training in this place and will also polish his skills."

"Sounds like a plan," Vesemir nodded in approval.

* * *

"How do you know so much about the Aen Elle Harry?" Triss asked. Vesemir and Eskel had left the room, leaving Harry alone with Triss and an unconscious Geralt.

"I spent a couple of decades in their world," Harry replied as he administered the potions to Geralt. He didn't mind talking to Triss about this. He knew her well enough to trust her.

Triss was surprised to say the least. She had heard of only one other sorcerer who had travelled to and back to the world of the Aen Elle. Many were curious, and _plenty_ had tried. Few were successful but none except the one had ever returned. Now it seemed there were _two_ sorcerers that successfully travelled between their two worlds. It had been decades since anyone had even attempted to cross between worlds. The fact that Harry had managed it was nothing short of amazing. She was curious as to why Harry never mentioned it to anyone. He had plenty of friends among their community.

"I stayed with an Aen Saevherne for a while. He was studying the passageways and I was simply curious. He didn't mind sharing his knowledge with me. A decent guy, but his way of thinking didn't quite fit with mine. So, eventually I left, exploring their world. There wasn't much to do though and I easily stood out in cities, even with a glamour," he explained.

"Fascinating," Triss said as she watched him work, "I've dreamed of visiting their world many times. You must have seen and learned so much about their culture."

Harry hummed in agreement. The land of the Aen Elle was exceptionally beautiful as was their architecture and traditions. Harry spent months of his time simply roaming the landscape and admiring their buildings. He stayed away from populated areas, and kept his interactions with the elves to a minimum. He didn't want any of them to know that a human was walking amongst them.

The human world was equally beautiful. However, unlike the Aen Elle's home there was much war, poverty and monsters. The different kingdoms were always at odds with one another. Tensions were always high and it wouldn't be unexpected to wake up one day and learn some kingdom had declared war on another. Harry remembered reading a history book that said a king went to war with another simply because he lost a bet and didn't want to part with his prized stallion. 'They went to war over a fucking horse,' he mentally snorted at that thought.

"What made you come back?" Tried asked him, breaking Harry out of his thoughts.

"I missed you. I couldn't bear the thought of not being with you any longer," Harry replied as he smiled at her.

Triss merely rolled her eyes, but smiled nevertheless. She was used to Harry's cheesy come on's. "Nice try," she said, "But you didn't know me until a couple of years ago." She frowned at that. "In fact, no one knew you until three decades ago," she said and eyed him curiously.

Harry ignored her unasked question. "I came back because you can only survive for so long in isolation. As I said, I had little interaction with the elves there," Harry said, "So, when I wanted to leave, I went to the elven sage I had been in contact with. With his help I was able to come over."

Harry stood up and went for the door. "Well, I'm going exploring," Harry said, "Keep an eye on him till I get back. Inform me if his condition changes. Oh, and don't molest him while he's asleep." He threw her a cheeky smile at the last remark. Triss just waved him off with a laugh.

Once out the door, Harry descended the spiral staircase and went through the door that led to the dining hall. He found Lambert there with Vesemir, peeling potatoes. Lambert glanced at him for a second, but then proceeded to ignore him. Vesemir acknowledged him with a nod of his head.

"How's Geralt?" he asked as he paused his work.

"I administered the potions. There shouldn't be any changes anytime soon. He should be awake by this time tomorrow. I have Triss monitoring his condition," Harry replied in his best clinical voice. He continued, "I was hoping to get a tour of your keep as well as the surrounding land. When you are free of course."

Lambert rolled his eyes. "Sure your highness," he said, "Why don't you wait right here while I get yo-". Vesemir decided to cut him off before he finished that sentence. "Sure thing Harry. We can go right now. " he said, "Why don't you finish with these. In the mean time I'll show Harry around." The last part was addressed to Lambert. Lambert opened his mouth to protest but then thought better of it.

Vesemir turned to Harry and gestured at him to follow. Harry's first opinion of the keep was accurate. It was ancient and falling apart due to a lack of maintenance. However, he couldn't help but like this place. It had a strange charm to it. It was nowhere near as majestic as Hogwarts but it did remind him of his first true home.

When they reached the training courtyard Harry saw Eskel sparring with a kid. He guessed late teens judging by the prepubescent beard. He was quite impressed. Harry knew just the basics of how to handle a sword. It was around the time he gained possession of Godric Gryffindor's sword. He never had any talent in swordplay though, so he didn't pursue further study.

Looking at the spar in front of him he kind of a wished he had stuck with the training. The two of them were parrying and attacking each other in perfect synchronization. Each of them were anticipating the others moves and reacting to them. It was more like a dance than a battle of swords. However, before long the kid made an error and Eskel quickly took advantage. With a leg sweep followed by an upward swing of his sword, Eskel knocked the kid to the ground while simultaneously disarming him as he was falling down.

"Not firm enough," Vesemir barked from beside Harry, "Your attack was loose. When Eskel parried your attack, he caused you to stumble sideways. You recovered quickly, yes, but that was all he needed to finish you off." The kid was barely paying attention. He was too busy panting and trying to get his breath under control. He nodded at Vesemirs' point nevertheless. Vesemir turned to Harry and waved his hand at the kid. "Harry, allow me to introduce you to Leo. Leo, this is Harry, a sorcerer. Triss brought him here to help Geralt," he said. Harry nodded at Leo who only waved his arm tiredly at Harry. Vesemir then addressed Eskel, "Harry and I are taking the horses. I'll just give him a quick tour of the neighboring land."

The two of them headed to the stables and Vesemir directed Harry to one of their spare horses. Harry mounted his horse and followed Vesemir to the keep's main gate.. It was time to explore the mountains.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

The sound of two metals clanging against each other filled the courtyard. Harry was breathing heavily. He was way out of shape. However, he couldn't wipe the smile off his face. He was having fun. Seeing his opponent advancing on him once again, he readied himself.

"Wrong! You should have parried that attack. Your dodge put you in an unfavorable position," came the voice of Vesemir.

Harry wasn't paying him any attention though. He was focused on his opponent, Leo. Vesemir was right, the dodge had put him in an unfavorable position, which Leo was quickly taking advantage of. Harry smirked as Leo made his move, an action that did not go unnoticed by their audience - Vesemir, Eskel and Lambert. As Leo reversed his blade to quickly attack Harry before he could recover, Harry thrust his blade forward. Leo's blade was the first to reach, but Harry calmly batted the blade with his left hand. The blade never even pierced his skin. Harry completed his thrust and the tip of his blade rested near Leo's throat. He stayed in that position for a few seconds and the retracted the blade.

"That isn't fair," Leo complained, "You used magic to deflect my blade."

"Oh," Harry said with a smile, "Was that a rule? No magic allowed?"

"It is unlikely for your opponent to use magic, but not impossible," Vesemir stated, "There is an off chance that you will have to battle sorcerers, witchers and deadly monsters that utilize magic in close combat. You must be ready for this." Vesemir rubbed his chin and hummed as he thought of an example for Leo. "There was once this sorcerer, Vilgefortz of Roggeveen. Geralt fought him. Geralt was sloppy and he underestimated the sorcerer as they engaged in melee combat. Vilgefortz wielded a staff, no magic, and he wiped the floor with Geralt. He spared him at the end of their engagement and _lectured_ him to never underestimate his opponent," Vesemir said.

He nodded at Harry, approving his use of magic. "You knew Harry was a sorcerer. Just because he was fighting you with a sword does not mean he wouldn't use magic to assist him. We witchers also use magic in the form of _signs_ to aid us in battle," Vesemir continued his lecture.

"Yeah but I couldn't use any signs since I broke my finger yesterday," Leo pointed out.

"And Harry has no proper instructions in swordplay," Vesemir pointed out in turn, "You both had disadvantages and advantages. Harry simply utilized his better than you did."

"Don't sweat it kid," Harry said, "You're a beast with that sword. Couple of years experience in the field and you'll be giving Eskel and Lambert a run for their money." He patted Leo on the back reassuringly.

"Hah!" Lambert exclaimed, "Like that will ever happen."

"Harry's right," Eskel spoke up, "You're rough around the edges now simply because you lack battle experience. A few decades and you will be able to keep up with me. You are definitely above average in swordplay."

Vesemir nodded in agreement. He turned to Harry. "You have good reflexes Harry. I'm impressed. Not many sorcerers are in good shape," he commented. "Although, you stamina could use some work," he added with a smirk.

Harry frowned at that. He had tried to keep in shape over the years, but, his regimen was nowhere near as gruelling as it was during his auror years. "Yeah, I guess I better add some exercises to improve on that," Harry said.

Vesemir nodded approvingly. He liked the lad a lot, which was surprising. Vesemir got along with most people but connected with very few. Besides his fellow witchers, he could name only a few people he trusted. He had guessed that Harry was maybe a decade or so older than Geralt. However, unlike Geralt's stoic demeanor, Harry was upbeat. He played a few pranks on Lambert, told stories about his adventures to Leo, accompanied Eskel on hunting trips and drank alcohol with Vesemir.

Triss had mentioned that Harry was horrible in fights and didn't know many spells for battle. Vesemir doubted this. Just from watching him fight Leo he could tell that Harry had experience. A _ton_ of experience. Harry only used magic at the end of the spar, but throughout it he managed to keep up with Leo. Leo was faster and stronger than Harry. It was only Harry's experience in combat that allowed him to even the playfield.

Further speculation was interrupted as he noticed Harry staring up at something. He turned and saw that Triss and Geralt were observing them while chatting with each other. He gave a nod to the duo and turned to face Leo. He motioned for Eskel to jump in and be Leo's sparring partner.

* * *

"Barely two days have past since they found you," Triss said quietly as she looked at the spar below them. Leo was fighting Eskel with renewed energy. His loss against Harry made him slightly angry and he was determined to prove himself.

Geralt hummed in agreement. "I owe my recovery to you and Harry," Geralt said, "Thank you, Triss."

"Do you remember anything yet?" Triss asked. She turned and walked towards the steps that descended into the training courtyard. Geralt immediately followed her.

"Not much," he said. "I know the moves: pirouette, parry, cut," he said as he kept his eye on the spar below, "But not much else." After a few more steps he stopped ahead of Triss and turned to her.

"I can't explain it, but I feel a bond when we speak," he said hesitantly, "I know you. I know you were important to me."

Triss felt her face heat up and a long forgotten guilt resurged. Geralt was an old flame. She had once tried to steal him from his then lover Yennefer, but that was a long time ago. "Geralt," she began tentatively, "We...Oh!" She was startled as a flock of crows appeared above the walls and cawed at them.

Geralt smiled at her. "You're easily startled," he commented in amusement. Triss said nothing, but glared at him briefly. Geralt sighed and moved towards the training courtyard. "I need to think," he said to himself aloud.

"Time flows slowly at Kaer Morhen," Triss said, "You should have plenty of time to recover." They finally reached the group of people.

"Aha! It worked!" Leo exclaimed and raised his sword in triumph. He had just executed a particularly difficult move.

"Not bad," Vesemir said, "Take some rest." He turned to Geralt and nodded at him. "What do you think Geralt? Is he ready for the Path?" he asked.

Geralt wasn't paying attention however. He had just seen Lambert exit the keep gate with a troubled look on his face. Geralt felt something was off as well. His instincts were telling him that danger lurked nearby. He raised his hand and motioned for Vesemir to stop talking. Vesemir, Eskel and Harry immediately straightened themselves and went on alert. They now noticed that Lambert was missing and were paying close attention to the gate.

A moment later, the sounds of a fight reached their ears. "Vesemir!" shouted Lambert, "We've got company!"

Harry immediately took out his wand and began tracing runes. He may not be a fighter anymore but he sure as hell could support his friends. The rune he was tracing could be applied to only one person at a time. It thickened and hardened the skin for a short duration. It was the same rune he used against Leo in their recent spar. A direct hit from a sword or knife could still pierce the skin, but glancing blows could be deflected.

As he traced the runes, he looked at the company around him. 'Triss first,' Harry thought, 'She is most vulnerable against close combat. After her, Leo, Geralt, myself, Vesemir, Lambert and finally Eskel.' He decided to leave Eskel for last since he was in the best shape and had plenty of experience. He moved to Triss and placed a finger at the nape of her neck. Triss frowned at him and silently questioned him with her eyes as to what he was doing. Harry ignored her though. He was working on the second rune and moving towards Leo.

Lambert came rushing through the gate at that moment. A horde of people were behind him. They were armed with axes and swords and roared a battle cry as they rushed after him. Vesemir immediately reached for the gate lever and pulled it as soon as Lambert came through. The portcullis came rushing down and almost speared a couple of the attackers. Unfortunately, a dozen of the attackers managed to make it through as well before the gate closed.

"Geralt!" Vesemir shouted as he drew his steel sword, "Grab a sword off the training forms!"

The fight was quick and brutal. Harry had been impressed with the witchers spars, but nothing prepared him for their ruthless efficiency in an actual fight. The five witchers quickly took care of the interlopers before Triss could finish casting her first fireball. Harry had prepared four runes as the fight took place. Once the fight was over, he quickly transferred the runes onto Geralt, Vesemir, Lambert and Eskel. Lambert made some noise about not needing any of his voodoo but a serious look from Harry immediately quietened him.

"How are you feeling Geralt?" Vesemir asked as Harry went about placing runes.

Geralt shifted his gaze and looked at his mentor and replied, "I'm fine."

"Anyone know who the intruders are?" Vesemir asked the entire group.

"Ordinary bandits would never attack Kaer Morhen," Triss said giving her input.

"That we know of Merigold. You could try some of your famous magic…" Lambert remarked snidely.

"In due time, Lambert…"

"Enough!" Vesemir said as he took charge of the conversation, "We need to check the other possible passages to the upper courtyard."

The entire group made their way up the stairways towards the upper courtyard. As they reached the rampart that overlooked the lower courtyard a huge noise stopped them in their tracks. It sounded like something crashing against a metal surface.

"What's happening" Leo asked as he came to a halt.

Vesemir looked towards the keeps' gate right below them. "They're trying to break through the gate!" he shouted.

Lambert scoffed. "They won't get anywhere without a battering ra-"

Lambert was interrupted by a loud crash as the gate gave way and came tumbling down. As the gate clanged to the ground a huge beast with six limbs came through. Harry thought it looked like an overgrown praying mantis. It used four of its limbs to move around while the remaining two limbs hung in front of the beast like arms.

"Shit!" Leo exclaimed, "What is that?"

The beast gave a small screech as it came to a stop. A human followed behind the beast. His gait was casual and his expression relaxed. Harry noticed that magic was emanating from the man's left hand. The magic extended into a thick line and was coiled around the beast's head. Harry immediately concluded that the man, most likely a sorcerer, was controlling the beast. The sorcerer looked hideous. Harry thought he looked like he was a relative of Deadpool, without his costume of course.

"A frightener," Vesemir said interrupting Harry's thoughts, "One mean beast."

"Savolla," Triss spoke aloud as she eyed the sorcerer, "I know him. A sorcerer- as ambitious as he is insane…"

"Yay," Harry muttered in a blank tone, "Lucky us."

Savolla was staring at them. He had a bandana covering the lower half of his face. With a fancy gesture Savolla directed the frightener to climb the stairways of the lower courtyard. The beast was joined by the remaining intruders.

"They're coming up here," Vesemir told the group, "Get ready."

The witchers unsheathed their blades and took stances. Lambert directed his gaze to the upper courtyard behind them.

"There's more," Lambert warned them, "They're entering the upper courtyard!"

The group in the upper courtyard weren't headed towards them. They were moving towards the keep's entrance. Two individuals immediately stood out to Harry. They were at the head of the group. One of them was slightly pale and skinny. His outfit reminded Harry of an assassin of this period. He wore round tinted glasses and his jet black hair was slicked back like his childhood nemesis. He wore fingerless gloves and combat leather boots. Harry could make out a knife attached to his left boot. He couldn't be sure though as the angle kept the blade pretty well hidden.

The other person was much more intimidating. He was well built and had a slightly dark skin tone. An assortment of accessories littered the man's face. Harry suspected those 'accessories' were littered with charms. He had a ducktail beard that made his face look more menacing. Two potion bottles hung from his belt. The potions along with the facial accessories lead Harry to believe that he was a sorcerer. The only thing that contradicted Harry's presumption was his rippling muscles. Sorcerers rarely focused on strenuous physical activities.

"The one in the glasses is the Professor," Triss's said, "Murder for hire.." She frowned and focused on the person accompanying the Professor. "I sense magic…" Triss muttered out loud, "There's a sorcerer among them." Harry too had opened up his senses and confirmed Triss's suspicion. The sorcerer had given them a brief glance before he walked through the second inner gate of the keep. The gate came down once they passed through.

Triss turned towards the group. "The Professor is wanted in Redania, Temeria and Kaedwen," she explained to the group, "A real maggot. I don't recognise the sorcerer however."

"Merigold," Lambert spoke up, "I'm interested in whether you can disarm Savolla. The rest is witchers' work."

"I'll try," Triss said.

Geralt shifted his gaze to the approaching intruders. "They're coming," he said in warning.

"The frightener is very dangerous, but it's vulnerable to loud noises," Vesemir chimed in.

"The bells in the upper courtyard!" Lambert exclaimed.

"Exactly," said Vesemir, "Eskel, Lambert, you'll help me stop the frightener and the bandits. Leo, stay behind us. Geralt, you open the gate to the upper courtyard." The witchers nodded their heads in agreement. Vesemir then turned to Triss and Harry. "When we're there, Triss can stop Savolla and his pet while we prepare to deal with the Professor and the unknown sorcerer."

"I'll figure something out," Triss said.

"I'll throw around support spells whenever I see an opportunity," Harry added.

Vesemir nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Let's do this!" he said, "Bleed them a bit down here before withdrawing. Geralt, follow the wall and break through to the tower where there's a passage to the upper courtyard."

Without a word Geralt turned and headed towards the courtyard. The rest of the group stayed behind to deal with the approaching bandits. Harry's attention was drawn by a bandit screaming a warcry and charging straight at them. Harry performed a simple gesture with his wand and cast the _Langlock_ jinx at the man. The bandit immediately slowed his charge and both his hand went to his throat. The jinx had affixed his tongue to the roof of his mouth. While he could still breath, his sudden predicament had shocked him enough to react as if he was choking. Eskel immediately capitalised on the opening and threw a dagger at the bandit. It dug into the center of his skull and the man went down. Seeing their comrade taking down with such ease halted the charge of the rest of the bandits.

"What's the matter boys?" Lambert spoke up with a smirk on his face. His arms were stretched outward as if he was welcoming the bandits. "You've challenged witchers to battle. Surely you didn't think things would go smoothly, did you?"

Lamberts speech instilled some fear in the bandits. Harry could easily see it on their faces. Savolla noticed their hesitance too. He barked orders for them to engage the group. Reluctantly, the bandits resumed their charge and the witchers strategically positioned themselves in front of their two sorcerers. As the first bandit was about to reach them, Harry cast a spell that turned the skin blue. The bandit immediately took notice and started to freak out mid charge. He failed to notice as Vesemir stepped forward and ran his sword through him. Harry grinned in amusement. ' _Who knew prank spells were so useful,'_ Harry thought. He threw a Jelly-Legs curse that caused his targets legs to collapse. However, the number of bandits was too much. Even with the help of two sorcerers, the witchers were slowly being pushed back. They were at the courtyard gate now and had no more room to withdraw. The frightener was almost upon them.

Just as things were about to get dire, the gate behind them opened and the group rushed through. Triss immediately cast a fireball at the gate and collapsed the ceiling. The gate and chunks of rock came tumbling down cutting off the path for the bandits and the beast. The beast screeched in anger as it was denied its prey.

"That was close," Harry commented.

"The Professor and the sorcerer have gone into the Keep," Geralt said drawing everyone's attention away from the collapsed gate.

"Looks like they aim to rob you," Triss said.

"Rob us?" Lambert scoffed, "Of what?"

"Triss, child," Vesemir said, "We have nothing of value. Some good steel, snow fox pelts,-"

"I mean the laboratory and you know it," Triss said firmly, "Someone wants your famed mutagens."

"You're jumping to conclusions," Lambert said as he crossed his arms.

"Triss may be right," Eskel spoke up in Triss' support, "We need to find out what they want."

"One thing at a time," Vesemir jumped in, "We shouldn't turn our backs on a strong sorcerer leading a frightener."

"And you can't let the bandits in the lab!" Triss said.

Vesemir nodded his head in agreement. "Geralt, you've dealt with sorcerers before. Find out what this one wants," Vesemir said, "Leo will guide you. The rest of us will stay back and make sure no one follows you."

Geralt, with a gesture of his head, asked Leo to take lead. The group followed them to the entrance of the keep. Once there, they decided to fortify their position. Harry set up various traps that were designed to slow, immobilise, trip and knock back its targets. He made sure everyone knew where the traps were as he didn't want any friendly fire. He also checked on the runes he applied to everyone to make sure it was working properly. By the time they were done Geralt and Leo had returned.

"What did you learn?" Vesemir asked upon seeing them.

"The bandits are in the lab, searching for something," Geralt said, "The sorcerer used the Circle of Elements to create a magic barrier."

"Blast it!" Triss cursed aloud, "Why didn't you mention there was a Circle of Element down there?"

"It didn't seem important at the time," Vesemir said.

"If the sorcerer aligned with the Circle, he can create a stable enough portal through which he'll travel to anywhere on the continent, taking your equipment with him," Triss said seriously.

"Holy poopapalooza Batman, what do we do now?!" Harry exclaimed. Everyone looked at him strangely for a couple of seconds before returning to the matter at hand.

"All right," Vesemir spoke up, "We made a mistake Triss, but you said the sorcerer was harmless."

"I said I didn't know him," Triss replied, "I think we should protect the lab above all."

"Don't panic Merigold," Lambert spoke in a fake suave voice, "We know you'd like to see our witchers' secrets."

"Vesemir," Triss said in a dangerous voice, "If that idiot doesn't shut it, I'll-"

"Enough!" Vesemir intervened, "Lambert, stop baiting Triss, show her some respect. Triss, if we go to the lab, they'll have us surrounded. We know tactics."

"Our only option is to split up," Harry said in a laid back voice, "One small team to go to the labs and secure the mutagens while the bulk of our force to remain behind and deal with the bandits and frightener."

"Harry's right," Eskel said, "We need to protect the lab and kill the frightener."

"I can take care of the barrier," Triss spoke up, "I'll go inside."

Vesemir nodded his head in agreement. "I'll stay and handle the frightener and Savolla," he said, "You should accompany Triss to the labs Geralt."

"I'll join them," said Leo.

"It's decided then," said Vesemir, "Harry, Eskel and Lambert will stay with me."

Harry barely paid attention to the discussion. He was sensing a powerful build up in magic. He was surprised Triss hadn't taken notice. Just as he was about to warn the group a powerful ripple in magic came forth.

"Savolla just cast a spell!" Triss warned everyone in a hurry, "Something's happening!"

Everyone felt the ground shake. Harry suspected they were about to break through the wall. It was smart of them. If they cleared the rubble at the gate they would be forced down a specific path, precisely where the bulk of their traps were laid. A large explosion blew through the wall. A nearby cart was ripped apart and sent scattering across the courtyard.

Harry could see Savolla calmly walking through the entrance he had just created. The frightener soon followed its master. Vesemir, Eskel and Lambert quickly rushed forth to engage the bandits and the beast. Geralt, Leo and Triss moved towards the keep, no doubt heading towards the laboratory.

With a sigh Harry moved towards the three witchers'. Seeing as no one was looking at him he quickly conjured a sword that he held in his left hand. If anyone managed to reach him he could use it defensively. The witchers were engaging the bandits right now. Savolla, however, was left to his own devices and that was _never_ a good thing. With a flick of his wand Harry sent a spell at him. The bandana that covered the lower half of his face jumped up and covered his eyes. In addition to this, it began tugging him in random directions.

With Savolla temporarily detained, Harry focused on assisting his friends. They seemed to be doing well on their own, but the frightener was advancing on their position. He activated a rune he had placed in that area. The ground began to turn into ice from the rune and began spreading even further. Once it reached the frightener, the beast began to flail comically as it struggled to get a firm grasp on the ground. Harry deactivated the rune to stop the ice from reaching the witchers.

Harry had to duck and roll in order to avoid a fireball. He guessed Savolla was free and was not happy. "Eww!" Harry said in disgust as he faced Savolla, "You're even uglier than your father, Freddy Kreuger!"

Savollas' angry faced twisted in temporary confusion at the statement. "Freddy who?" he muttered to himself.

"Hold him off for a few seconds Harry!" came Vesemir's voice, "I'm coming!"

"Not to worry Vesemir old buddy," Harry said in a cheerful voice, "He seems like a classic villian. I bet he's about to go into a monologue right now!"

"You dare!" Savolla shouted in fury, "A pathetic sorcerer like you who can't even cast proper spells dares to insult me? I know who you are Harry Potter. Scum like you should never have been given the title of a sorcerer. Your very existence makes me wan-". Savollas' monologue was interrupted as he slipped on a patch of ice. He hung in the air comically for a second, his eyes widened in surprise before he landed awkwardly on his neck. Harry could immediately tell he broke his neck on impact.

Vesemir had joined Harry at that point and saw Savolla trip. He turned to Harry in astonishment. Harry raised his arms and shrugged. "Whoops?" Harry said, "He should watch where he's going. Lucky _break_ huh?" Vesemir narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Yes," he muttered, "lucky break."

A screech from the frightener drew their attention. They saw the beast crawling forwards near the edge of the ice patch. Once the beast cleared the ice, they would have to deal with him.

"It's sensitive to noise," Vesemir told Harry, "We need to create as much noise to disorient the beast. We could use those siege cauldrons to our favor." Harry smiled at Vesemir and gave him a thumbs up. "On it!" he said cheerfully.

Harry levitated the huge cauldron over to the beast. Just as it cleared the ice patch, the huge cauldron fell onto the beast's head and covered it. The frightener thrashed and desperately tried to remove the cauldron from its head. Harry began to pelt the cauldron with any huge debri he could find. The noise the cauldron made disoriented the beast and it began to stagger about like it was drunk.

The witchers immediately took advantage of the seemingly drunken beast. Within a few seconds they targeted the beasts vital areas and brought it down. With a final wailing screech, the beasts legs gave way and it slumped to the ground. Harry walked up to the frightener and experimentally nudged it with his foot.

"Well, that was easy," Harry said as he turned and faced the three witchers'.

Lambert scratched the back of his head and answered sheepishly, "Well things aren't so smooth when there isn't an 'all powerful' sorcerer assisting you."

"I feel like you paid me a compliment, but it was hidden behind you sarcastic quotation marks," Harry told Lambert.

"You were very helpful Harry," Vesemir said, "I assure you, the three of us would have had a very tough time handling a fully mature frightener."

Harry saw Eskel nod his head in agreement. "Aww you guys with all the compliments," Harry said as he fanned himself with his hand, "I feel like I'm tearing up." He then switched emotions and spread his arms out wide. "Group hug!" he shouted, "Come one guys, bring it in. Don't leave me hanging."

Lambert immediately scoffed and walked away towards the Keep. Eskel joined him, though there was a smile on his face as he left. Vesemir stayed for a couple of seconds staring Harry in the eye. The corner of his lips twitched slightly before he too turned and joined his fellow witchers. Harry was left standing there with his arms open for a group hug. He smirked at the group and then proceeded to join them.

* * *

Harry and his group quickly made their way through the huge entrance hall of the keep and headed towards the laboratory. On their way, they ran into Triss. She was lying on the ground, resting on her side. She was holding her stomach in pain. Harry immediately rushed to her and began to assess her condition.

"They're ransacking the laboratory," Triss said weakly barely maintaining conscious, "The other sorcerer is… I underestimated him… Hurry!"

"You guys go ahead," Harry told the witchers, "I'll take care of her."

The others nodded and rushed down the spiral staircase that lead to the laboratory. Harry turned his attention back to Triss and masked his anger in the form of a question, "What have I told you about taking candy from strange sorcerers?". Triss was delirious at this point and manage to mutter 'candy?' before she passed out.

Harry sighed and got to work. He had precious few friends in this world that he could count on. Triss was one of them. Whoever did this to her was going to pay. Not now though. Triss' health was more important right now than some petty revenge.

* * *

 **AN: Hey guys! As many of you have no doubt guessed, the first Witcher game starts from this chapter. I'm loving the reviews all of you have sent me so far. However, the reason I've taken up writing this story is to improve myself. Character building wise, plot building wise, grammar, and so on. So, whenever you leave a review please try to include what you liked about the chapter, what you hated, how you like the story progressing, if you think a character is acting unlike they would normally react and why.**

 **I appreciate any and all feedback, so don't hold back.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

"He is lucky to be alive," said Vesemir, "The arrow penetrated his skin but the damage was minute - just a flesh wound. If not for his armor and your protection rune Harry, I fear Leo may not have survived the attack. You have my thanks."

Vesemir, Harry and Geralt were in the witchers' laboratory assessing the damage. The assassin, ' _The Professor'_ , and the sorcerer had successfully stolen the witchers secrets and escaped unharmed. Vesemir could feel an oncoming headache as he gazed at an empty cabinet that stored the bulk of their potions.

"I'm glad I could be of help Vesemir. I've fed him a potion to hasten his recovery and cast a spell on him to let him sleep it off. He'll be good as new when he wakes up," Harry replied.

Vesemir nodded his head in thanks to Harry. "What happened in here Geralt?" Vesemir asked as he turned to address the white-haired witcher.

"The sorcerer had managed to open a portal and take whatever he wanted from the lab. We did not make it in time," said Geralt with a heavy frown, "The assassin, _the professor_ , stayed back to 'deal' with us. Leo was circling around to his flank and then attacked the professor… I was late." Geralt shook his head silently chastising the boy in his mind. "The professor launched a crossbow bolt straight into his chest," he added.

Vesemir sighed deeply. 'That boy still has no patience,' he thought to himself. "It's not your fault Geralt. We're all to blame. Triss barely made it, fighting for us," said Vesemir. He turned towards Harry and asked, "How is she doing now? I assume since you are here she has recovered."

"Recovered? No," Harry said stonily that masked the fury he felt at the mage that had escaped. He wanted to deal with that man personally. At Vesemir's frown he continued, "But she has stabilized. She is unconscious and I have Lambert watching over her. If her condition changes, he will notify me."

"Doesn't Lambert hate Triss?" Geralt asked with a bit of worry.

"Not at all. That's just how they are with each other," Vesemir said and then addressed Harry, "How long will it take to recover from whatever the mage did to her?"

Harry frowned and rubbed his forehead in worry. "Triss is allergic to magic potions. I need to brew them in a very specific manner in order to feed it to her. And seeing as how we're short on ingredients… " he gestured to the ransacked lab, "One of you will have to go hunting for them. I'd rather not leave the stronghold with her current condition."

"That won't be necessary," Vesemir said confidently, "While they have made off with most of our stuff and some rare ingredients we have a separate storage space for the rest. I am sure we can find what you need in there."

Harry nodded his head and motioned for Vesemir to lead the way.

"Geralt, you like tired. Why don't you rest? There is not much to do at the moment," Vesemir said as he walked passed Geralt. Geralt nodded his head and moved to the corner of the room. He would meditate there and recover his energy.

"You have been invaluable throughout this entire incident Harry. Once again, I must thank you," Vesemir said as they walked through the stone corridor.

"Enough already," Harry said with an exaggerated sigh, "You're making me blush."

"Hmpf," Vesemir grunted in amusement. They walked in silence for a moment before Vesemir spoke up once again, "Triss mentioned that you mainly focus on healing spells, potions and runes. She said you were all but useless when it comes to battle magic." Harry grunted but said nothing else. His body tensed ever so slightly and had Vesemir not been as old or as experienced he would have missed the reaction.

"I can't help but notice how well you fought against Leo earlier today," Vesemir said.

"I like to keep in shape," Harry interjected.

"And then afterwards," Vesemir went on as if Harry hadn't spoken, "You were all to calm and collected. You immediately placed protection runes on all of us, aided us with spells that distracted our opponents; you didn't even flinch when the frightener was upon us and single handedly disabled the beast while we cut it up."

Harry had stopped walking and Vesemir turned around as soon as he realised Harry wasn't following him anymore. The corridor was barely lit, but for a witcher who could see in the dark easier than most, it was not a problem. Harry's face was blank, but his emerald green eyes shone brightly.

"All of this leads me to one conclusion," Vesemir said, "You're experienced." Harry closed his eyes and flinched unconsciously as a memory he wished he'd forgotten hit him. Vesemir frowned at his reaction but went on, "And I don't mean minor experience either. If I had to guess you've had decades of combat experience under your belt."

The corridor went unnaturally silent as Harry took a moment to compose himself. He then started walking again. Vesemir followed after him and soon took the lead, directing Harry down the passageway.

"Say that what you have spoken of is true," Harry said, his face unnaturally still as they walked onward, "What of it?"

Vesemir smiled as his assumptions proved true. "Absolutely nothing," he answered, "I have but one question. Why hide it?" Vesemir motioned for Harry to enter a room as they had finally reached their destination.

Harry looked around the place and nodded in satisfaction. When Harry went about searching for ingredients, Vesemir thought his question would go unanswered. However, when Harry reached for a stack of Calcium Equum he finally broke the silence.

"When I was young, _much_ younger than I am now, I was a lawman," Harry spoke softly. His back was to Vesemir as he inspected the ingredient. "I hunted down criminals, bad mages in particular, and put them in a cell. I was exceptionally good at it," he went on, "One day, I confronted a bunch of mages performing a ritual to summon a powerful monster. They were going to use a little girl as a sacrifice and had almost completed the ritual. I had no back up and no time to detain all of them. I could've you know. It was my policy, one that I had inherited from a man I looked up to. To do my level best to bring in everyone I faced alive, so that they can be judged by their peers and not by a sole man. Killing was _always_ my last resort."

A memory of Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody briefly surfaced in Harry's mind before he discarded it. "But like I said, I was short on time," Harry continued, "The monster was about to come forth and I needed to stop them as soon as possible. So I did the only thing I could."

Harry turned around and looked at Vesemir in the eye. "I slaughtered them," Harry said in a detached tone as if he was discussing the weather. Vesemir said nothing as he patiently waited for Harry to continue. "I could not even grant them a peaceful death. I threw spells around with reckless abandon. Spells that dismembered them, burned them, commanded objects to tear them apart. And when I was done, just shy of three dozen bodies lay around me and I was covered in their blood."

"However," Harry paused as a painfully memory resurfaced, "The monster had unfortunately been summoned. The ritual was partially successful. Also, what I hadn't realised until the end was that the little girl had awoken. And she had witnessed the entire thing. I could see fear in her eyes. Not of the demon that was a few feet away from her, but fear of _me_."

Harry sighed once again and ran his hands through his hair. He felt old and tired all of a sudden. "I later visited her at the hospital. Her memories of the incident had been wiped. She didn't remember anything. But when she saw me..." Harry closed his eyes as he recalled the memory. Unlike previous times he didn't push it away or discard it from his mind. He let the memory wash over him as he recalled her expression. How it morphed from dread, to panic, to sheer terror. He recalled her screams as she flailed about wildly and tried to run away.

"When she saw me," Harry repeated, "She screamed. Called me a _monster_ and that I was out to get her. She _begged_ , _pleaded_ with the staff so save her. To shield her from certain death." Harry finally looked away from Vesemir and resumed his search for ingredients. "She should have had no recollection, no memory of me. But what she felt at the time of the incident was so powerful, so strong, that she instinctively knew I was dangerous. A monster… " Harry said, "Have you ever been called a monster Vesemir?"

Vesemir scoffed. "I'm a witcher lad," Vesemir spoke, "Been called a monster plenty of times. Mostly by humans, but a couple of times even by monsters themselves."

Harry laughed mirthlessly as he grabbed some Celandine. "It's different though," Harry said, "They called you a monster out of anger, out of hatred maybe." Harry went quiet for a moment and then continued, "But have you ever been called a monster out of fear? By one as innocent as a child? Not because of what she had seen you do, but because she instinctively knew what you were capable of? Can you imagine a child that had never met you, was scared to death of you? That no amount of kind eyes or gentle words could change her mind about you?"

"Ever since then, I changed," Harry said, "I took up a desk job for a while. Sparring with my peers felt unpleasant. I was afraid of hurting them and resorted to only defending myself. Training the juniors became tedious, mundane. I just lost the will to continue doing my job."

Vesemir nodded. "During the battle, you avoided injuring or killing any of the intruders. Although you did knock out a few of them," he commented.

Harry shook his head. "It's not like I'm afraid of hurting or even killing someone now. Time heals all wounds. I just avoid getting in that situation as much as possible. I have no desire to become the man I once was," Harry said, "I'd rather invent new potions or create new runic patterns."

Harry gave a short bark of laughter once again and turned his head to face Vesemir with a puzzled but amused face. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this," Harry said, the amusement never leaving his face. He turned away once again and browsed the shelves. "Perhaps it's because you remind me of my mentor," Harry went on, "You would have gotten along well with him."

Vesemir smiled on the outside but inwardly regarded the lad with pity. Nevertheless, he welcomed the change of topic. "What was he like?" he asked.

"Like any typical kind old sorcerer," Harry answered, "Powerful, wise, all-knowing. He had a century on me and treated me like his grandson. Although, he could be manipulative at times. Annoyed the hell out of me."

"He sounds like a great man," Vesemir said, "I'm flattered to know that I remind you of him."

"Yeah," Harry mummered as he finished packing the ingredients in a pouch, "Dumbledore would've gotten along well with you."

* * *

A soft moan that almost sounded erotic echoed through the bedroom. Harry stifled a laugh as he sat right next to the bed. The chamber was lavishly decorated. Harry quietly marveled at how quick Triss had made herself at home. Triss was resting on her side on the bed, and slowly opened her eyes. "Harry?" she mumbled before she shut her eyes, "I had a strange dream. Lambert was staring at me and telling me not to die on him. Called me bigheaded."

Harry chuckled and glanced at the remaining occupant of the room, standing at the foot of the bed. Lambert had an annoyed expression on his face and his arms were crossed.

"I have no idea what rubbish she is talking about," he muttered and turned around to exit the chamber.

Harry turned back to Triss and asked, "Are you feeling better?"

Triss hummed in agreement. "Are the others okay?" she asked as she opened her eyes and looked at Harry.

Harry nodded his head. "Leo took an arrow to the chest, but he survived and will make a full recovery," Harry said, "Minor scrapes and bruises on the rest."

"That's good," she sighed in relief. "They got away didn't they?" she asked despairingly.

When Harry said nothing she cursed herself internally. "I got careless," she spoke aloud. "We all do sometimes," Harry replied almost immediately. He reached out and caressed her face. "Triss," Harry said softly, "When I saw you lying there, hurt and helpless, I…" Harry stopped because he was afraid of what he was going to say next. Triss blushed at his words and brought her hand up to gently hold onto Harry's hand. "I'm glad you're okay," Harry said finally.

Triss turned and rested on her back. She brought her other hand up and rested it against her forehead. "I have to get up soon don't I?" Triss asked rhetorically, "We need to hunt down the thieves."

Harry smiled and drew up the blanket to cover her up to the chest. "Leo hasn't awoken yet and I don't think the others would blame you if you wanted to rest some more."

"Oh, I wasn't thinking of resting," she said smiling coyly. Harry raised an eyebrow at her suggestion. "Infact, I was thinking of a heavy workout that would be relaxing, not to mention incredibly satisfying," Triss purred seductively.

Harry laughed softly. "When we get back home," Harry promised as Triss immediately pouted. "For now, rest," said Harry and then he kissed her on the forehead. Triss felt the effects of a sleeping spell take hold. She fought it briefly and managed to mutter, "Harry you assho-". With those parting words Triss promptly fell asleep.

* * *

"We found these brooches among the bandits corpses," Eskel said as he held up the strange badge. There was a salamander symbol etched on it. The badge itself was made of cheap material and misshapen.

Everyone had assembled in the dining hall. Although calling it a dining hall was a bit of a stretch. Broken stone lay about in the corner. A simple large table occupied the centre of the hall next to a cooking pot over a fire. Dust had settled everywhere save for the table which was haphazardly cleaned by a cloth. Harry was resisting the urge to cast cleaning charms all over the place. He wasn't a neat freak, but these conditions were deplorable even to him.

Lambert had brought three mugs filled with ale and handed Eskel and Geralt one each while keeping the last for himself. Leo eyed their alcohol jealously while absentmindedly scratching at his latest scar located on his chest. Vesemir sat at the head of the table with Triss and Harry sitting by his left side.

"I recognise it," Harry said, drawing the attention of everyone else, "Members of Salamandra carry them. They're a criminal organisation consisting mainly of assassins and thugs. Though mages are rumored to be part of it as well. They might even have a base of operations in Vizima."

"How do you know of this Harry?" asked Vesemir curiously.

"I own an inn in the Trade Quarter, in Vizima - The Marauders," Harry spoke cheerfully, "We frequently host high-class parties and events. The royal court is one of our best customers. You hear a lot of things from drunk nobles."

Lambert snorted, "Yeah, I'll bet."

Vesemir smiled and spoke, "I see. Then we have identified our foe. This makes tracking them much simpler."

"I doubt it shall be simple," Triss spoke up.

" _Simpler_ ," Vesemir repeated, "I have no doubt that an organization comprised of assassins will be difficult to track down."

Vesemir leaned back in his chair and hummed thoughtfully. "We will have to split up," he said, "If we venture out as a group we will no doubt draw attention. We can also cover more ground this way."

"Agreed," Eskel spoke up, "Harry said they may have a base in Vizima. That is our best lead so far. Geralt can accompany Triss and Harry to help them investigate."

Geralt nodded his head in agreement. "I'll travel to Vizima then, but I'm not taking any portals. They can go on ahead of me," Geralt said gruffly.

Vesemir placed his hands on the table and stood up. "It's settled then. Geralt will ride south to Temeria. Geralt, King Foltest owes you a debt of gratitude. You lifted a curse from his daughter some time ago. Do not be afraid to seek his aid. Leo shall accompany me while I call in a few favors from some old friends," he spoke.

Eskel nodded and said, "I'll go west. I know a few people there and I prefer the coastal climate."

"Then I'll head east, to Kaedwen. I know a sorceress there who will help me out," Lambert chimed in.

"I'm a member of the royal council in Temeria and I have plenty of contacts among mages. I'll try to use my influence to find anything I can on Salamandra. Should I learn anything, Harry and I will contact Geralt," Triss added.

Harry leaned forward and place his elbows on the table. His hands clasped together as he regarded everyone stonily. "You each have your assignments," he said seriously, "You know what we are up against. The foe we face is strong, beyond our wildest dreams. Their influence is far reaching and all encompassing. We must not falter, steady your guard and forge onwards!" He pumped his fist into the air at the end.

Leo nodded seriously throughout the entire speech not knowing that Harry was kidding around. Triss and Lambert rolled their eyes in annoyance. The witchers soon began their preparations to head out. They packed lightly for the road, preferring to mostly live off of the land. Triss motioned for Geralt and Harry to stay a moment.

"Are you sure you do not wish to accompany Harry and me through the portal?" Triss asked Geralt.

Geralt nodded. "I'm sure," he said.

"The trip through the countryside could be good for you," Harry chimed in, "It might jog your memory."

"Lets hope it will," Geralt said.

"Alright," Triss said admitting defeat, "At least you remember your irrational fear towards portals."

"It's not irrational and it's not fear," Geralt argued back. "It's simply… unease," he finished off lamely.

Triss smiled fondly at him as an unbidden memory entered her mind. "Find us as soon as you reach Vizima. We'll gather what information we can until then," Triss said. She cocked her head to the side and teased him, "Don't get killed along the road Geralt. We just got you back. Take care of yourself, okay?"

"I will," Geralt said dryly, "Now go already."

With one last parting look, Triss lead Harry towards the Circle of Elements located near the laboratory. She could use it to power her portal. Whilst Harry could apparate them to Vizima on his own, she had no inclination to use his brand of teleportation unless it was absolutely necessary.

* * *

Triss sighed loudly and threw herself onto a plump couch. She stretched herself on it and turned to face Harry. He had just stepped through the portal and was smiling at her. His bright green eyes bore into her own. She suppressed a shiver that travelled down her back and frowned at him.

"What?" she asked archly.

"Nothing," he said continuing to smile, "You just reminded me of a cat, that's all."

Triss raised an eyebrow at him but otherwise didn't say anything. She turned to face the ceiling and sighed once again. "So much has happened in so little time. Geralt is back!," Triss muttered happily, then frowned, "And the witchers secrets, their famed mutagens, has been stolen. That's bad Harry, _very_ bad."

Harry sat down on a chair next to the couch and spoke, "You're afraid the witchers secrets will spread."

Triss nodded her head and said, "Those secrets have been closely guarded for centuries. And for good reason, they're downright dangerous in the right hands. We have no notion of what nefarious purpose Salamandra desires the mutagens. But, in the hands of a capable mage, they can wreak havoc given the right resources. Especially from the sorcerer I faced."

Harry was silent for a bit while he contemplated the situation. "It's not all bad," he finally spoke, "I doubt they intend to sell it. What they stand to make from it is nothing compared to the money they reap from their smuggling and drug operations." He went on, "Which means, they intend to use the mutagens for themselves; experiment and enhance their own men. If that's the case, then they shall guard it well. This is good. Not only does it mean we have some time before their efforts prove successful, but, the situation can also be contained when we find them."

Triss was nodding along as he spoke and took a moment to consider what he had just said. "You're right," she said after awhile, "All is not lost yet. Whatever damage they do can be undone. We just need to find them." She turned and looked at Harry with narrowed eyes. "You are being awfully helpful with all of this," she said, "I thought you never got involved in anything, unless it's personal."

"Messing with my friends does make it personal," Harry pointed out casually.

"Oh," Triss smiled teasingly, "Spent only a few days at Kaer Morhen and you already consider the witchers your friends? I'm hurt. It took us weeks if not months for us to become friends."

Harry smile at her and reached out to stroke her hair. "Don't take this the wrong way but most of the mages are absolute pricks," said Harry, "Sure, some of them are decent characters, but nearly all of them talk and act like pompous nobles. Don't get me wrong. I love talking to them about their research and discoveries of magic, but, sometimes they say things that make me want to ram a rod up their arse."

Triss giggled at that. She knew how Harry felt about most mages, but he still got along with nearly all of them. It was rare for him to get angry or even upset at anyone. Although, there have been a couple of incidents where Harry had pranked his colleagues when they had earned his ire. The idea of using magic for something as juvenile and childish as a prank was baffling to her. Yet, Harry did it like it was the most natural thing to do. Some of the more eccentric mages had loved his pranks so much they had come up with their own.

Philippa Eilhart was not amused. In one of the _Lodges_ meetings she had gone on a rant for nearly ten minutes about one particular pranking incident. Some of the members found it hilarious and that only seemed to fuel Philippa's outrage. Margarita Laux-Antille, founding member of the Lodge and headmistress of the mage school Aretuza, _adored_ Harry. She found his antics and personality endearing. She was also close friends with Philippa and was the one who finally managed to calm her down.

Triss was brought out of her thoughts by Harry's voice. "The witchers on the other hand are refreshingly different. They have no interest in politics. They don't brown nose every influential person they run into. They have no hidden agenda. Their way of life is simple, although dangerous. It's a life I admire even though I have no wish to live it," Harry said contentedly.

Triss smiled at that thought and snuggled deeper into the couch. "Do you think you would make a good witcher?" she asked Harry.

Harry laughed and stuck out his chest. "Of course," he said pompously, "I excel at everything I do!"

Triss laughed at Harry's posturing. She reached out and patted his knee assuringly. "Sure you do," she said patronizingly as if agreeing with a child that he could become a dragon slayer.

"You mock me, but I'm about to prove you wrong," Harry said with a smirk as he leaned towards Triss.

"Oh," Triss smiled coyly, "How do you plan on doing that?"

Harry's face was inches away from hers. His eyes gazed lovingly into hers. He leaned in further until his mouth was near her ear. "By fulfilling a promise," he whispered sensually and gently bit her earlobe. Triss stifled a gasp by biting down on her lip. She didn't even notice as Harry vanished her dress with a gentle flick of his wrist. She was left in only her lingerie as Harry gently touched her hair. He moved his hand downwards tantalizingly along her skin and cupped her cheek.

Harry placed his lips just above hers, barely an inch apart. Occassionaly their lips would touch for the briefest of moments before they parted. Triss had closed her eyes and surrendered herself to Harry's administrations. Just when Harry sensed she was getting impatient he moved in. Softly, caringly, he kissed her and nibbled her lower lip playfully. It lasted a few seconds until Triss deepened the kiss. Their tongues clashed and caressed each other as they waged a fierce battle for dominance.

Harry sometimes let the woman take charge, but not this time. He wanted Triss to surrender herself to him. Finally, after a minute of passionate battle, Triss gave in. Harry enjoyed his spoils for only a moment or two before he broke the kiss off slowly. Triss moaned in dissatisfaction as Harry's lips left hers. Harry paid her no heed though as he laid butterfly kisses along her neck and moved downwards to her clavicle, onwards to her chest, briefly over the top of her breast, then her stomach, until he finally rested on top of her lingerie.

While Harry was making his descent he had conjured a silk cloth and directed it over Triss's eyes with magic. Triss tried to brush it off at first but the magic held it there in place and wrapped around her head. Triss gave up quickly with a frustrated sigh and leaned back into the couch as she focused her other senses on the feelings Harry was invoking. She felt a miniscule amount of magic take hold and pull her panties slowly down her legs. Harry kept both his hands on the her hips while gently placing soft kisses just below her navel.

Once the panties were finally off, Harry lightly grabbed her legs and placed them over his shoulder. She could feel his hot breath over her labia. His nose periodically brushed up against her folds. His ministrations were borderline torturous and she moved her hands towards the back of his head. Harry anticipated her move and immediately grabbed onto both her hands. He gently but firmly positioned them behind her lower back and left them there trapped underneath her own weight. He then repositioned his hands back onto her hips and stroked her lovingly.

She could easily remove them if she wished. But a firm, warning squeeze on her hips was the response she received whenever she showed the minutest amounts of struggle. She sighed once again and forced herself to relax, trying to will her frustrations away. After a few more moments of unbearable torture Harry finally lowered his head onto her.

Triss gasped.

* * *

 **AN: Hiya guys! A couple of you had asked why Harry was not as involved in the fighting as he usually is. I had mentioned briefly why in chapter 2 but didn't go too in depth with it. So some of you may have forgotten the main reason why he quit being an auror. Originally, Vesemir's confrontation with Harry was a lot shorter, but I expanded on it and allowed Harry to talk about how he felt and still feels about that incident. Hopefully, this will explain Harry's reluctance for confrontation. I feel this will make things a lot more interesting with Harry, instead of him steamrolling everyone and wreaking havoc.**

 **For those of you who were disappointed with the abrupt ending, this is not an erotic novel. Yes, I don't mind writing the romantic stuff much, although I'm not great at it, and yes I do want to showcase some intimate scenes. But, this isn't 50 Shades of Grey. I will not be writing any sex scenes, period. Not interested in developing that area of my writing skills, so trying to create a masterful erotic scene is pointless.**

 **Thank you for all your feedback. It has been very helpful. My writing prowess is growing stronger by the day!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

"I do not see how this matter concerns the Lodge," said an elven sorceress. Her projection flickered for a moment before settling down. This was Francesca Findabair, queen of the elves of Dol Blathanna, which was a state neighbouring the kingdoms of Aedirn and Lyria. She was a powerful sorceress and was considered by many to be the most beautiful woman in the world. With shining golden hair, gleaming azure blue eyes and perfectly symmetrical angular face, it was hard to argue with the claim.

"A couple of mutagens get stolen from the School of the Wolf and we have to clean up their mess?" Francesca continued imperiously, "I think not!"

The group of sorceresses were gathered in a large circular chamber. The room was bereft of any furniture save for a couple of shelves. Only the equipment needed by the mages for communication occupied the center of the chamber. Francesca Findabair, Ida Emean aep Sivney, Síle de Tansarville, Assire var Anahid, and Fringilla Vigo could not be present in the room. They had to resort to communication via projection to attend the meeting. However, Philippa Eilhart, Margarita Laux-Antille, Keira Metz and Triss Merigold were all present in the chamber.

"The witchers' secrets in the wrong hands can be very dangerous Francesca," Triss warned, "If Salamandra is successful in their utilization, they will become a criminal organization comprised entirely of super humans. Humans, with the physical capabilities of a witcher. They already have significant clout in the criminal underworld, but this can help them expand their influence to entire kingdoms. Very soon, we might have a major power to contend with, one we might not be able to deal with."

It had been more than a week since the attack on Kaer Morhen. It took a while to assemble The Lodge of Sorceresses since every member was extremely busy. Triss appreciated the extra time though. It allowed her to come up with a plan to persuade her sisters of the Lodge. The Lodges' primary concern was to bring the war between Nilfgaard and the Northern Kingdoms to a close while maintaining the mages' influence on the fate of the known world. The Lodge had significant political influence in both the northern and southern realms, and was comprised of the most powerful female mages that currently lived.

Triss knew that if she came to them with a personal matter they would scoff at her and deny her any assistance. Well, those that she were close friends with wouldn't, but the majority of the Lodge would. So, she decided to paint Salamandra as an organization that could rapidly expand out of control and threaten the stability of the kingdoms.

"I concur with Triss," Philippa said, "I too at first thought this problem was beneath our attention. But, she brings up valid concerns. We must deal with them."

"You wish to eliminate Salamandra?" asked Fringilla incredulously.

"No, do not be foolish. That would take years," Philippa said, "However, if we dispose of their leader and those capable of replacing him or her, then they shall scatter across the lands. Most likely, forming groups and becoming local bandits."

"Let us not forget that the primary reason Salamandra has become a concern is because they possess the witchers' secrets," Síle interjected, "Our priority should be acquiring them. Perhaps they can be of use to us."

Triss frowned at that. She should nip this in the bud. "I do not think that is a good idea," she said, "Yes, it might prove useful, but at what cost. Do we really need to face the wrath of the witchers. The Lodges' greatest strength is our secrecy. Should they follow the trail, they _will_ discover us."

"Only five remain from the School of the Wolf," Ida said dismissing Triss's concerns, "Hardly a threat. Should they ever come close to discovering us, we can deal with them appropriately."

Triss opened her mouth to counter Ida's words but was beaten by Francesca. "Do not underestimate the witchers of the Wolf Ida," she chided her fellow elf, "What makes them truly fearsome is not their superhuman abilities, but their mind. They do not overpower their foe with numbers. They take on monsters individually. They study it, learn of its weakness, counter its strength and strike when the time is most opportune."

"Salamandras' days are numbered," Triss added assuredly, "With five witchers focusing all their attention on one enemy, it is only a matter of time. If we acquire their secrets, their attention will focus on us. If one witcher is extremely dangerous, then imagine what the combined might of even five of them shall be."

"And with the White Wolf back within their ranks, their strength is even greater," Margarita said in agreement, "While I would love for the opportunity to study their mutagens, it is not worth the potential threat they possess. The witchers secrets must be returned to them."

As her sisters began arguing the merits and demerits of obtaining the witchers secrets, Triss spotted a familiar black cat perched on top of one of the shelves. She glared at it icily. The cat merely flicked its tail in boredom and yawned deeply. She was forced to refocus on the meeting when Philippa spoke up.

"It is decided then," Philippa said authoritatively, "We shall aid in gathering information and providing whatever resources we can to aid Triss and the witchers to recover what has been stolen from them. If Triss has the opportunity to copy their notes without their knowledge, she shall do so."

Triss nodded her head in agreement, satisfied with the decision. She had no intention of copying their notes, but the Lodge need not know of that. After that, the Lodge mainly discussed what was happening in their respective kingdoms. Keira, who like Triss, was another sorceress of the Temerian royal council mentioned that King Foltest had left Vizima. She was accompanying the king as he travelled north to La Valette, most likely to meet up with his mistress, Mary Louisa La Valette.

"No doubt that will end badly once the Baron of House La Valette learns of his wife's infidelity," said Síle.

The others agreed and discussed how they might take advantage of the situation if that were to occur. Triss mentioned that while Keira and the king had been away, a plague had swept through the Temple Quarter of Vizima. Luckily, they managed to quarantine the area before it spread any further. Triss also mentioned that Harry had been studying the plague and was working on a cure.

The meeting soon concluded after that. Francesca, Ida, Síle, Assire and Fringilla all disconnected their projections. As soon as the projections disappeared, Triss turned towards the cat and shouted, "Dammit Harry! What the hell are you doing here?"

The remaining Lodge members instantly turned their attention to the cat Triss was screaming at. Philippa narrowed her eyes at it, while Margarita and Keira smiled. The cat merely gazed at Triss uninterestingly as it swished its tail back and forth. Triss stomped towards the shelf the cat was perched on. She placed her hands on her hips as she continued to lecture the feline.

"The Lodge is supposed to be _female_ only," she said, "Even worse, it's supposed to be a _secret_."

The cat snorted at that, the action amusing Margarita and Keira greatly. "A poor one," Harry spoke, while still in his cat form. Philippa, Margarita and Keira widened their eyes as the cat spoke up. His voice sounded like an adolescent child. But what amazed them was that he was able to speak at all. Polymorphism was a magical ability that allowed mages to transform into an animal they had a special affinity with. While the ability was extremely rare, it was not unheard of. Philippa herself could transform into a large grey owl. However, none of them have ever heard of a mage being able to communicate while in their animal form.

Philippa's anger at Harry's presence was temporarily abated by her curiosity. "How are you doing that?" she asked while stepping forward to observe Harry's feline form. He was a black LaPerm cat with a short, wavy spring coat. The hair on his paws and chest were white. A small, almost indistinguishable lightning bolt scar was located above his right eye.

"Practice mostly," Harry said as he got up and stretched his body, "A bit of strengthening of the vocal cords during the transformation process. I doubt your owl form is capable of doing it though."

Philippa narrowed her eyes at that. When Harry was done stretching, he turned towards Triss and jumped towards her. Triss squawked indignantly as the cat landed on her head before immediately moving to her right shoulder and curling up into a seated position. Triss glared at him angrily for messing up her hair as she instinctively adjusted her stance to accommodate his weight. With a quick application of magic, her hair righted itself.

"It's not that hard," Harry continued once he settled in, "Both cats and dogs have been known to produce syllables. It's possible that if they were more intelligent they might be able to communicate with us through speech."

Philippa pondered over Harry's words while ignoring his last sentence. She wondered if it might be possible for her to modify her vocal cords in her owl form to allow her to communicate verbally. As Philippa was lost in thought Keira approached Harry and held her arms up.

"Harryyy!" she exclaimed, "Come here and let me have a look at you."

Using Triss's shoulder as leverage, Harry pounced onto Keira. She happily caught him and brought him towards her chest in a hug. His fur felt soft and silky. She enjoyed the feeling as it rubbed against her skin. Harry took the opportunity to nuzzle his face into her cleavage. Keira squealed.

"You naughty boy!" she mock admonished, giggling all the way.

Triss fumed silently at the sight and crossed her arms, but otherwise said nothing. Margarita had stepped forward and was gently stroking his fur. "Your fur is amazing Harry," she said as she continued to stroke it, "It's so soft and pleasant to touch." She lifted his head and turned it towards her so she could get a better look at him. She gazed into his hypnotic emerald green eyes that shone brighter than ever. She always thought that his eyes were his best feature.

"You're eyes are practically glowing Harry," she marvelled, "You could kill a girl with those eyes." She reached upwards and proceeded to scratch him behind his ears. Harry automatically shut his eyes and purred aloud as Margarita worked her magic. "Why didn't you mention that you were a polymorph?" she asked. Harry didn't reply though as he was lost in sensation.

"Aww, isn't he adorable," Keira cooed in delight, "He's purring!"

Margarita smiled gently and continued on for a few more seconds. She then stepped back and asked, "Isn't it time you greeted me properly?"

Harry bobbed his head once and jumped out of Keira's arms. As soon as he landed, he transformed back into a human. He took a moment to adjust his clothing before stepping towards Margarita and giving her a warm hug. Margarita gladly returned his affection. Harry considered Margarita almost like an elder sister of sort. He frequently visited Aretuza, a magical academy for young ladies, to chat and spend time with her. Margarita enjoyed his visits. His carefree and sometimes childish personality was a refreshing change from the usual mages she had dealt with. She cared for Philippa dearly, but sometimes she wished the sorceress would lighten up.

Keira pouted as they broke their hug after a few seconds. "Oh," she said faking sadness, "I'm feeling a bit left out."

Harry turned and smiled at her. He gave a quick hug. While not as warm as his hug with Margarita, it was still affectionate. Keira was one of few mages he considered a good friend. Once he finished hugging Keira, he turned and advanced on Philippa.

"Cease your actions immediately!" Philippa said sternly as she brought up her hand to halt his advance.

Harry immediately stopped and pouted at her like a child. Keira, Margarita and even Triss cracked a smile at that. Philippa and Harry's relationship was a bit shaky. Philippa valued Harry's intellect and abilities greatly. To her, he had the mind and drive of a true sorcerer. His research and advances in the field of healing and potions was exceptional. Not to mention his knowledge in the art of runes. But she would never tell him that.

Primarily, because she simply could not tolerate his behavior. His breezy attitude irked her to no end. She found it unbefitting of a sorcerer of his standing and took every opportunity to lecture him on it. Moreover, Harry took every chance he had to try and flirt with her and bed her. Philippa would never admit it out loud, but she found Harry extremely attractive. If the circumstances were different, she would welcome his advances and even reciprocate it. But, the way he flirted with her was just so annoying that she immediately dismissed all his attempts.

Harry also constantly teased her about her strict personality. If it were done in private, she might have forgiven him… maybe. But, he did this during important gatherings such as balls and banquets.

Unbeknownst to her, Harry loved it when she lectured him. Triss had once asked him why he took every opportunity to annoy Philippa. He then confided in her that he had a fantasy of an older, mature, strict professor seducing and punishing him for being naughty.

Triss found the idea of Philippa bending Harry over her knee and spanking him so absurd that she laughed hysterically for five whole minutes. Harry once had a huge crush on his Ancient Runes professor, Bathsheda Babbling. He was hoping that one day Philippa would snap and grab hold of him for some angry, passionate sex. Triss doubted that would ever happen but didn't voice her opinion as she found the situation hilarious.

"What do you think you are doing here?" Philippa demanded, whilst completely ignoring Harry's childish display, "Spying on Lodge meetings and not even having the decency to conceal yourself properly."

"Oh?" Harry inquired innocently, "Was this the meeting of the rumored Lodge of Sorceresses? I had no idea. I thought they were but a myth."

Philippa gritted her teeth in displeasure. "Stop your drivel at once Potter!" she ordered with a stern visage.

"That's it," Harry said in a fake moan, "Say my name!"

Philippa's frown grew even more pronounced. Before she could retort Harry interrupted her.

"Careful Philippa dear," he berated her, "If you frown so much, your age will show."

Philippa's anger grew immensely as Harry brought up her age. As one of the oldest members of the Lodge, she was nearing her second century. She was closer to Vesemir's age than she was to Harry. However, unlike Vesemir, she looked like she was in her late 30's. Just as she was about to gather her magic and blast Harry apart, Margarita intervened.

"Enough Harry," she said smoothly, gently admonishing him, "You've riled her up adequately."

"Philippa," she said turning to her old friend, "Stop engaging him like so, you're playing right into his hands."

That comment immediately cooled Phillipa off. The idea that Harry could ever play or manipulate _her_ was ludicrous and the expression she shot Margarita conveyed her sentiment. Margarita ignored the look Philippa sent her and turned back to address Harry.

"What are you doing here Harry?" she asked politely.

"I was bored," Harry replied casually. Now that his fun with Philippa was over, he took on an apathetic demeanor.

Margarita could feel Philippa's anger rising once again and Triss was not far behind. "Why don't you accompany me to Aretuza then?" she suggested, ignoring the two of them, "I've been meaning to get your opinion on something I'm currently working on."

"Sure," Harry said brightly, "Sounds like fun." He turned to look at Triss. "I'll see you back in Vizima, Triss," Harry said as a goodbye.

Triss sighed deeply and nodded her head at him while Keira waved him off mirthfully. Harry offered his arm out to Margarita and she graciously accepted it. She then opened up a portal for Harry and her.

"I despise that man," Philippa muttered once the pair disappeared. Triss rolled her eyes knowing that she was lying and was merely still pissed at Harry. Keira simply giggled at her comment.

* * *

"Would you like me to get you anything sir?" said a young woman demurely.

"For the last time Annette, drop the sir nonsense," said Harry without looking up. His eyes were focused on the ledger before him. It was the end of the month and he was sorting through the taverns finances. "I'd like a Firewhiskey please," Harry added.

Annette nodded her head and exited the room. Harry was in a small room that he used as an office on the first floor of the Marauders Inn. The inn had been open for almost two years now and it was doing very well. It used to be called The New Narakort before Harry bought the place. One of Harry's favorite pastime back on Earth was to kick back and have some Firewhiskey with Ron while smoking his cigar. They would chat on current events, past shenanigans and the ministry in general.

He missed his best friend dearly. And while he didn't quite find a male companion to bond with in this world, he had managed to remake some beverages from the wizarding world. It took a _lot_ of experimentation in his potions lab, but he had managed to make some of his favorite drinks. While they didn't taste quite the same, they were pretty darn close.

Butterbeer was a popular drink among their female customers, as was the Chocolate liqueur. Firewhiskey and the Simison Steaming Stout were their most popular drinks and were generally ordered by their male patrons. He had also managed to reproduce Dragon Barrel Brandy, Daisyroot Draught and Beetle Berry Whiskey. During his experiments he had also managed to brew some original drinks that had gotten popular.

Mollymood wine when consumed changed the color of one's skin depending on their mood. It was extremely popular among their regulars once they got over the fear of their skin changing color. The effects wore off within an hour. Another trendy drink was the Ice Giant vodka. When ingested, mist would come out of the mouth and the throat would be pleasantly chilled.

The inn was already a popular hang out when Harry bought it. However, with these novelty drinks, nobles and the wealthy flocked to his establishment. He was initially overwhelmed with the demand for his drinks. He simply couldn't brew them fast enough. However, he soon came up with a brilliant solution.

With generous use of the space extension charm, Harry had quadrupled the size of the tavern's basement. He then modified the area into two large rooms and one gigantic room. One for his potions lab and research, another for spell experimentation and exercise, and the largest room was for his distillery.

With clever use of runes he had managed to make the distillery completely autonomous. It was powered by a massive crystal that needed to be charged once a week. The entire room had taken him about four months to create. Harry had been bombarded with complaints for the lack of his novelty drinks during those months. The distillery was definitely his masterpiece, and he felt his knowledge on runes grow by leaps and bounds through this experience.

"Here you go," said Annette as she placed a glass of Firewhiskey on the table.

"Thank you, Anny," Harry said and gave her a quick smile before burying himself once again in the ledger.

However, when Annette didn't leave immediately, he frowned and looked up at her once again. She was wringing her hands in distress and refusing to meet his eyes.

"Yes?" Harry prodded her, "Is there something you need Anny?"

"Umm," she muttered so quietly that Harry almost didn't hear it. She cleared her throat and raised her chin up forcing herself to look at Harry in the eyes. "A couple of the customers are getting rowdy and harassing the other patrons," she said in a rushed breath, "They're also breaking glasses and spitting on the floor. Maria said she will handle them, but…". She finished her sentence unsurely and looked extremely uncomfortable.

Maria was like an older sister to her. When she started working at the inn, Maria was her mentor. She often went to her with any personal or professional advice. She found her to be very nurturing in private and downright terrifying at work.

She didn't want to second guess Maria's orders but she felt that the situation was going to spiral out of control. Harry sighed deeply and leaned back in his chair. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration as yet another problem cropped up.

"I'll be right there," Harry told her. Annette nodded and quickly exited the office and went down the stairs. Harry grabbed hold of his drink and downed it in one shot. He winced as the alcohol burned his throat and belched out fire a moment later. 'Let's see what's going on doing there,' he thought to himself.

As soon as he exited the office he was assailed by the drunken voices of the rowdy patrons. His office had been charmed to prevent any noise from entering it. It gave him some peace and quiet, as the inn was usually very loud.

As he descended the staircase, he caught sight of an exasperated Maria trying to calm down the rowdy bunch. His eye twitched in annoyance as he saw one of the men try to grab her ass. She expertly avoided the hand, barely paying the man any attention as she continued to address all of them. Harry didn't want to interfere as Maria needed to handle these situations when he wasn't here. If things went too far, he would step in. For now, he would merely observe the situation.

"God dammit!" shouted another patron from a nearby table, "Why don't you arseholes just simmer down or you can get the fuck out!"

"Whad'ya say ta' me, 'ya damn peasant?!" the drunk noble slurred as he stood up abruptly. His sudden motion produced a wave of vertigo and the noble wobbled unsteadily. Seeing him about to fall, Maria stepped forward to steady him.

"Gerroff me 'ya wench!" he bellowed and shrugged off Maria's arm. He then raised his arm to slap her for touching him.

"Enough!" Harry roared, his voice reverberating through the entire inn. Everyone instantly went quiet as all eyes focused on Harry who was at the foot of the staircase. The noble had frozen as well, his arm still raised.

"Oi!" shouted the tipsy noble after coming out of his stupor, "Who da fuck argh' youuu?"

"I am the owner of this inn," Harry said calmly. His eyes then narrowed and regarded the drunken aristocrat with a steely gaze. "You must be new," Harry went on, "So I must warn you. Hassling the other customers is not tolerated. Damaging property is not acceptable. And most of all, there is _no_ violence permitted in Marauders Inn."

"You pieeeece of shit!" the noble screamed imperiously as he struck what he thought to be an intimidating pose, "D'you know hwo am I?!"

"I don't. And I don't care," Harry said dismissively, "King Foltest himself is forced to abide by these rules. I could care less what a spoiled rich brat like you thinks. Especially, one who probably can't even bathe himself without the help of his servants."

The noble grew furious and drew the sword that was strapped to his waist. His three other companions stood up and drew their swords as well. Some of the patrons got up and sought safety, while others drew their own weapons. The regulars however, didn't get up and took on a delighted expression. They knew what was coming.

"I am afraid I am going to have to ask you to leave," Harry continued calmly ignoring their drawn weapons, "I have warned you not to cause any trouble and it looks like you are about to do just that."

"Oh yeaaah?," yelled the noble, "Maaake me!"

"As you wish," Harry said, closing his eyes and concentrating.

What happened next, shocked the customers who had never witnessed such an altercation before. Runes appeared along the walls and floor of the inn and glowed ominously. There was not a section of space of either the wall or flooring that hadn't been covered in runes.

If the distillery room was Harry's masterpiece, then the entire inn was Harry's magnum opus. He had spent nearly a year fortifying the place and it still hadn't been completed fully. It also required his presence to function due to the large amount of magical power required to activate it. He had some ideas to tie the runes to draw power from the magical energy present in the atmosphere, but nothing had come of it yet. He had enlisted Triss's help and together they were making some progress.

"I will ask you once again," Harry said stonily as he opened his eyes once more, "Please leave."

The nobles companions had fear in their eyes as they eyed the pulsing runes. They had never faced magic before and were scared to death. The noble also eyed the magic writing nervously, but he was drunk. With false courage granted by alcohol, he puffed out his chest and shouted, "Makke me, biiit-!"

The noble choked on the last word as his throat closed up. He was finding it hard to breathe. His vision was also blurring, more than it already had. 'No," the noble thought in panic, "It's just everyone's faces that are getting blurred.

"You do not speak to me that way," Harry said deadly interrupting the man's thoughts, "Not in my house."

The noble tried to raise his sword to attack but found his arms heavy. Soon, he couldn't even move them an inch. He struggled fiercely to move as the frightening situation sobered him up a bit and allowed him to think more clearly. He was desperately wishing he had taken Harry's offer and just left the inn. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed his companions were in a similar state.

Once the four of them were completely frozen, Harry stepped forward and stood next to them. With a wave of his hand he vanished their clothes with the exception of their underwear. The runes that had been pulsing all around the room faded out of view. Some of the customers were confused as to what had happened while the regulars got out of their seats in anticipation.

"Ladies and gentleman," Harry spoke up addressing all of his customers, "As many of you know, violence is forbidden in Marauders Inn." Some of the customers absentmindedly nodded in agreement.

"The _degree_ of punishment for rulebreakers is left up to you - the patrons," Harry went on, "My diligent employee, Maria, will provide you with paint and brushes." Maria had just exited the kitchen while carrying two cans of paint with a bunch of brushes balancing on top of it. Annette followed her, carrying her own cans of paint and brushes. Trailing behind Annette, carrying some more paint and brushes was Malcolm, the cook.

"You, the patrons, are free to use these brushes to paint anywhere on their petrified bodies. You can also move them into various positions of your liking," Harry said while flexing the nobles arm back and forth in demonstration, "However, groping or inappropriate touching is not allowed. If any of these young men are sexually abused, you will face the same punishment."

A couple of the customers started laughing uproariously. A few of the women averted their face while blushing. Nearly all of them though had gleeful expressions. It was rare for them to mess with a highborn. The first time this happened, Maria had asked him why he simply did not beat them up and throw them out. Harry had smiled and explained to her that with the rich and noble, pain was temporary and would soon fade away. Humiliation however, that lasted a lifetime. _Especially_ , to those who boast and lord their status over others.

"Please enjoy," Harry said with a smile and stepped away, "And go wild." He noticed Maria shooting him a grateful look as he approached her.

"Thanks Harry," she said in appreciation, "I thought I had it handled, but I guess I was wrong."

"I would have never let him hurt you," Harry said while rubbing the side of her shoulder in reassurance.

"I know," she said smiling beautifully at him.

"I still have to work on the ledger, but I'll take care of it later," Harry told her, "If you need me, I'll be down in the basement."

Maria nodded her head and got back to work. Harry proceeded to the basement. The plague that had been quarantined to the Temple Quarters was getting worse by the hour. St. Lebioda's hospital, at the center of the district, had been flooded with sick people. He visited the hospital in the evenings to treat the more critical patients. However, he was merely treating their symptoms temporarily. He needed to find a cure to end the outbreak.

* * *

 **AN: A couple of you have asked how far do I plan to take this story. My intention is to go all the way to witcher 3 and then maybe an epilogue or two. Lets hope I have the drive to go that far and I don't get writer's block or something.**


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